Patent Application
20180080854
Vehicles undergo tests including simulated and/or actual impacts with other objects. The impact tests typically use sensors such as pressure sensors installed in the vehicle. The pressure sensors collect pressure data from an enclosed chamber. The pressure data can be used to detect a vehicle impact. For example, the pressure sensor may be installed in a vehicle door to detect a side impact. Testing the pressure sensors in a vehicle may be cumbersome, time-consuming, and costly.
An impact test system simulates a side impact of a vehicle. The impact test system includes a base and a track supported by the base. The base includes an impact surface The impact test system includes a block movably attached to the track. The impact test system includes a pressure chamber attachable to one of the block and the impact surface, and a pressure sensor attachable to the pressure chamber. The block is connected to the base with a spring. Upon releasing the spring, the block moves toward the impact surface, increasing the pressure in the pressure chamber. By using the spring to compress the pressure chamber between the block and the impact surface, the impact test system can produce different forces to simulate different side impacts. Thus, the impact test system can simulate different crash events and test different pressure sensors without using a vehicle door, reducing the cost of testing the pressure sensors.
The system 100 includes the block 115. The block 115 may be supported by the base 105. The block 115 moves along the track 110 toward the impact surface 120. That is, the block 115 includes at least one sliding element 125 attached to the block 115 that engages the track 110. The sliding elements 125 allow the block 115 to move along the track 110. The sliding elements 125 may be, e.g., wheels as shown in
At least one spring 135 connects the base 105 to the block 115, as shown in
The system 100 includes a pressure chamber 140. In the example of
As shown in
The system 100 includes a pressure sensor 160, as shown in
The pressure sensor 160 may be connected to a data transmitter 165, e.g., a wire, a cable, etc. Thus, the pressure sensor 160 can collect pressure data from the container 150 as the pressure chamber 140 is compressed and send the data along the transmitter 165. Alternatively, the data transmitter 165 may be a wireless transmitter installed in the pressure sensor 160 and may send the pressure data over a wireless network, e.g., WiFi, Bluetooth®, etc. A computing device (not shown) can use the pressure data when the pressure chamber 140 deforms from the undeformed state to the deformed state to detect when the pressure exceeds a pressure threshold. The pressure threshold indicates the pressure that at which one or more vehicle subsystems are programmed to actuate, indicating a side impact. Based on the tension in the springs 135, the pressure sensor 160 can collect pressure data for differing forces applied to the pressure chamber 140 and can determine whether the pressure data exceeds the pressure threshold. Thus, the pressure sensor 160 can be tested under differing impact conditions. Furthermore, because the cost of the pressure chamber 140 is less than a vehicle door, the cost to test the pressure sensor 160 is reduced.
The impact test system 200 includes a pressure chamber 225 affixed to the base 205. While the pressure chamber 140 of
The pressure chamber 225 defines a cavity 230. Because the pressure chamber 225 is substantially rigid, the cavity 230 defines a fixed spatial volume. The cavity 230 may be filled with air. The impact test system 200 includes a pressure sensor 235 attached to the pressure chamber 225. The pressure sensor 235 includes a processor and a memory such as is known, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor, such that the sensor 235 is programmed for various operations as disclosed herein, including to collect pressure data, of the air pressure in the cavity 230. While illustrated as a cuboid, the cavity 230 may be a different shape, e.g., octagonal, hexagonal, elliptical, etc.
The impact test system 200 includes a tube 240 connected to the pressure chamber 225. The tube 240 houses a plunger 245. The plunger 245 is a solid cylinder arranged to move through the tube 240 into the cavity 230. The tube 240 is connected to the cavity 230 of the pressure chamber 225 to allow the plunger 245 to move through the tube 240 and into the cavity 230. That is, the plunger 245 starts in a first position, as shown in
The plunger 245 may include a flange 250 disposed outside the tube 240, as shown in
The impact test system 200 includes at least one spring 255. The example impact test system 200 includes four springs 255, as shown in
The block 215 may include a plate 260. As the block 215 moves toward the pressure chamber 225, the plate 260 contacts the flange 250, moving the plunger 245 into the cavity 230. The plate 260 may be attached to the block 215 with, e.g., an adhesive including a glue, adhesive tape, a hook-and-loop fastener, etc., and/or a fastener including nuts, bolts, screws, etc. The plate 260 reduces the size of the block 215 and allows the springs 255 to move the block 215 to apply a specified force on the flange 250. That is, the block 215 may be positioned below the flange 250, and thus the block 215 may not contact the flange 250 when moving along the track 210. The plate 260, when attached to the block 215, may extend above a top surface of the block 215 and may strike the flange 250 when the block 215 moves toward the plunger 245.
The pressure sensor 235 may be connected to a data transmitter 265, e.g., a wire, a cable, etc. The pressure sensor 235 sends pressure data along the data transmitter 265 to, e.g., a computing device (not shown). Alternatively, the data transmitter 265 may be a wireless transmitter installed in the pressure sensor 235 and may send the pressure data over a wireless network, e.g., WiFi, Bluetooth®, etc.
When the springs 255 move the block 215 toward the plunger 245, the plate 260 contacts the flange 250. The flange 250 moves the plunger 245 through the tube 240, pushing the air in front of the plunger 245 into the cavity 230, increasing the air pressure in the cavity 230. At least a portion of the plunger 245 may enter the cavity 230, displacing some of the air in the cavity 230 and further increasing the air pressure in the cavity 230. As the plunger 245 enters the cavity 230, the pressure sensor 235 collects pressure data from the cavity 230. Thus, a computing device (not shown) can use the pressure data to determine whether the force applied by the plate 260 onto the flange 250 increased the pressure in the cavity 230 above a predetermined pressure threshold, indicating a side impact. Based on the size of the block 215, the size of the plate 260, and the tension in the springs 255, the plate 260 may apply differing forces to the flange 250, simulating different forces that would be applied to a vehicle door during a side impact. Thus, the pressure sensor 235 can be tested under different impact conditions.
As used herein, the adverb “substantially” modifying an adjective means that a shape, structure, measurement, value, calculation, etc. may deviate from an exact described geometry, distance, measurement, value, calculation, etc., because of imperfections in materials, machining, manufacturing, sensor measurements, computations, processing time, communications time, etc.
It is to be understood that the present disclosure, including the above description and the accompanying figures and below claims, is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided would be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading the above description. The scope of the invention should be determined, not with reference to the above description, but should instead be determined with reference to claims appended hereto and/or included in a non-provisional patent application based hereon, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur in the arts discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the disclosed subject matter is capable of modification and variation.
