JP2005280380A - Occupant crash protection for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an occupant crash protection for a vehicle capable of certainly detecting side surface collision in secondary collision of the vehicle and protecting the occupant. <P>SOLUTION: An air bag device is provided with a safety sensor; a side collision sensor; a yaw rate sensor; a vehicle rotation determination part; a side surface collision determination part; and an air bag activation circuit; and an air bag. Then, when output of the side collision sensor becomes a threshold value or higher during passing of a predetermined time after the vehicle rotation determination part determines that the vehicle is rotated, the side surface collision determination part determines the side surface collision in the secondary collision and deploys the air bag. Therefore, the side surface collision in the secondary collision of the vehicle can be certainly detected and the occupant can be protected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle occupant protection device for protecting a vehicle occupant.

Conventionally, as a vehicle occupant protection device, for example, there is a vehicle collision determination device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-180249. This vehicle collision determination device includes a center unit, a right satellite unit, a left satellite unit, two activation devices, a right airbag, and a left airbag. The center unit includes an acceleration sensor disposed in the center of the vehicle. The right satellite unit includes an acceleration sensor disposed near the center pillar at the center of the right side wall of the vehicle. The left satellite unit includes an acceleration sensor disposed near the center pillar at the center of the left side wall of the vehicle. When both the output of the acceleration sensor of the center unit and the output of the acceleration sensor of the right satellite unit become larger than the set threshold values corresponding to the respective outputs, one activation device deploys the right airbag. Further, when the output of the acceleration sensor of the center unit and the output of the acceleration sensor of the left satellite unit are both greater than the set threshold corresponding to each output, the other activation device deploys the left airbag. Thereby, a passenger | crew can be reliably protected at the time of the side collision of a vehicle.
JP-A-11-180249

  By the way, there is a side collision in a so-called secondary collision in which an impact is applied to the vehicle in a primary collision such as a head-on accident and a side collision with another obstacle is caused by the impact. The side collision in the secondary collision has a smaller impact than the side collision in the primary collision, and in particular, the acceleration at the center of the vehicle tends to be small. For this reason, the output of the acceleration sensor of the center unit disposed in the center of the vehicle becomes smaller than the set threshold value, and there is a possibility that the airbag cannot be deployed by the activation device.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle occupant protection device that can reliably detect a side collision in a secondary collision of a vehicle and protect the occupant. .

  Therefore, as a result of intensive research and trial and error to solve this problem, the present inventor has been able to detect a side collision due to a secondary collision based on the acceleration of the side of the vehicle after the vehicle has rotated due to the vehicle collision. I came up with the idea and completed the present invention.

  That is, the vehicle occupant protection device according to claim 1 is provided at a center portion of the vehicle and detects a lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and at a side portion of the vehicle. A second acceleration sensor for detecting a lateral acceleration of the vehicle; an acceleration detected by the first acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined first acceleration threshold; and an acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is a predetermined acceleration Side collision determination means for determining that the vehicle has undergone a side collision when the vehicle is greater than or equal to a second acceleration threshold, and an occupant protection device for protecting an occupant of the vehicle when the side collision determination means has determined that the vehicle has undergone a side collision In the vehicle occupant protection device including the occupant protection device activation means for activating the vehicle, a yaw rate sensor for detecting a yaw rate acting on the vehicle, and detection of the yaw rate sensor Vehicle rotation determining means for determining that the vehicle is rotating when the yaw rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined yaw rate threshold, and the side collision determining means is configured such that the vehicle rotation determining means is rotating the vehicle. When the acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined second acceleration threshold during a predetermined time after the determination, the vehicle is determined to have a side collision in a secondary collision. A vehicle occupant protection device.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle occupant protection device according to a second aspect of the present invention, the first acceleration sensor disposed in the center of the vehicle for detecting lateral acceleration of the vehicle, and disposed on the side of the vehicle. A second acceleration sensor for detecting lateral acceleration; an acceleration detected by the first acceleration sensor equal to or greater than a predetermined first acceleration threshold; and an acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is a predetermined second A side collision determination unit that determines that the vehicle has collided with the vehicle when the acceleration threshold value is equal to or greater than an acceleration threshold value, and an occupant protection device that protects the vehicle occupant when the side collision determination unit determines that the vehicle has collided with the vehicle In the vehicle occupant protection device including the occupant protection device starting means, a yaw rate sensor for detecting a yaw rate acting on the vehicle, and a yaw rate detected by the yaw rate sensor are further provided. Vehicle rotation determining means for determining that the vehicle is rotating when the vehicle is greater than or equal to a predetermined yaw rate threshold, and the side collision determining means is configured such that the vehicle rotation determining means is rotating the vehicle. When the acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined third acceleration threshold value smaller than the predetermined second acceleration threshold value during a predetermined time after the determination, the vehicle is subjected to a side collision in a secondary collision. A vehicle occupant protection device, characterized in that it is determined that the vehicle has been closed.

  According to the vehicle occupant protection device of the first aspect, the rotation of the vehicle can be determined from the yaw rate acting on the vehicle detected by the yaw rate sensor. Further, a side collision in the secondary collision is detected by comparing the acceleration at the side of the vehicle detected by the second acceleration sensor with a predetermined second acceleration threshold value during a predetermined time after the vehicle rotates. can do. Further, the occupant protection device can be activated based on the detection result of the side collision in the secondary collision. Therefore, it is possible to reliably detect a side collision in the secondary collision and protect the occupant.

  According to the vehicle occupant protection device of the second aspect, the rotation of the vehicle can be determined from the yaw rate acting on the vehicle detected by the yaw rate sensor. Further, by comparing the acceleration at the side of the vehicle detected by the second acceleration sensor during a predetermined time after the vehicle rotates with a predetermined third acceleration threshold value smaller than the predetermined second acceleration threshold value, The side collision in the secondary collision can be detected earlier. Further, the occupant protection device can be activated based on the detection result of the side collision in the secondary collision. Therefore, the side collision in the secondary collision can be detected more quickly and reliably, and the passenger can be protected quickly.

  The present embodiment shows an example in which the vehicle occupant protection device according to the present invention is applied to an airbag device having two airbags.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the airbag device according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a layout diagram of sensors and airbags, and FIG. 3 is a waveform of each part of the airbag device. Then, with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 2 and FIG.

  First, a specific structure will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, the airbag device 1 (vehicle occupant protection device) includes a safing sensor 2 (first acceleration sensor), a right side collision sensor 3 (second acceleration sensor), and a left side collision. A sensor 4 (second acceleration sensor), a yaw rate sensor 5, a microcomputer 6, a right airbag activation circuit 7 (occupant protection device activation means), and a left airbag activation circuit 8 (occupant protection device activation means); The right airbag 9 (occupant protection device) and the left airbag 10 (occupant protection device) are included.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the safing sensor 2 is an acceleration sensor that is disposed in the center of the vehicle and detects the acceleration in the left-right direction of the vehicle. The right side collision sensor 3 is an acceleration sensor that is disposed in the vicinity of the center pillar at the center of the right side wall of the vehicle and detects acceleration in the left-right direction of the vehicle. Left side collision sensor 4 is an acceleration sensor that is disposed in the vicinity of the center pillar at the center of the left side wall of the vehicle and detects the acceleration in the left-right direction of the vehicle. The yaw rate sensor 5 is a sensor that is disposed in the center of the vehicle and detects the yaw rate of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 1, the output terminals of the safing sensor 2, the right side collision sensor 3, the left side collision sensor, and the yaw rate sensor 4 are connected to a microcomputer 6, respectively.

  The microcomputer 6 includes a safing sensor output processing unit 60, a right side collision sensor output processing unit 61, a left side collision sensor output processing unit 62, and a vehicle rotation determination unit 63 (vehicle rotation determination means) realized by a program. And a right side collision determination unit 64 (side collision determination unit) and a left side collision determination unit 65 (side collision determination unit).

  The safing sensor output processing unit 60 is a block that outputs a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag when the output of the safing sensor 2 is greater than or equal to the safing sensor threshold (first acceleration threshold). , A threshold setting unit 60a and a comparison unit 60b. The threshold setting unit 60a is a block for setting a safing sensor threshold, and the safing sensor threshold is set to a value corresponding to the acceleration at the center of the vehicle at the time of a side collision of the vehicle that can determine a side collision of the vehicle. The comparison unit 60b is a block that compares the output of the safing sensor 2 with a safing sensor threshold set by the threshold setting unit 60a.

  The right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 outputs a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag when the output of the right side collision sensor 3 is greater than or equal to the right side collision sensor threshold value (second acceleration threshold value). The block includes a threshold setting unit 61a and a comparison unit 61b. The threshold value setting unit 61a is a block for setting a right side collision sensor threshold value, and the right side collision sensor threshold value is set to a value corresponding to the acceleration of the right side part of the vehicle when the side collision of the vehicle can be determined. . The comparison unit 61b is a block that compares the output of the right side collision sensor 3 with the right side collision sensor threshold set by the threshold setting unit 61a.

  The left side collision sensor output processing unit 62 outputs a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag when the output of the left side collision sensor 4 is equal to or greater than the left side collision sensor threshold (second acceleration threshold). The block includes a threshold setting unit 62a and a comparison unit 62b. The threshold value setting unit 62a is a block for setting a left side collision sensor threshold value, and the left side collision sensor threshold value is set to a value corresponding to the acceleration of the left side part of the vehicle at the time of the side collision of the vehicle that can determine the side collision of the vehicle. . The comparison unit 62b is a block that compares the output of the left side collision sensor 4 with the left side collision sensor threshold set by the threshold setting unit 62a.

The vehicle rotation determination unit 63 is a block that outputs a high level for a certain period of time until a secondary collision is assumed when the output of the yaw rate sensor 5 is equal to or greater than the yaw rate threshold. From the threshold setting unit 63a and the comparison unit 63b, It is configured. The threshold setting unit 63a is a block for setting a yaw rate threshold, and the yaw rate threshold is set to an optimum value that can determine the rotation of the vehicle. The comparison unit 63b is a block that compares the output of the yaw rate sensor 5 with the yaw rate threshold set by the threshold setting unit 63a.

  The right side collision determination unit 64 is a drive for driving the right airbag activation circuit 7 from the output of the safing output processing unit 60, the output of the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61, and the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. This block outputs a signal. The right side collision determination unit 64 includes AND blocks 64a and 64b and an OR block 64c. The AND block 64 a is a block that takes the logical product of the output of the safing sensor output processing unit 60 and the output of the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61. The AND block 64 b is a block that takes the logical product of the output of the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 and the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. The OR block 64c is a block that takes the logical sum of the outputs of the AND blocks 64a and 64b.

  The left side collision determination unit 65 is a drive for driving the left airbag activation circuit 8 from the output of the safing output processing unit 60, the output of the left side collision sensor output processing unit 62, and the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. This block outputs a signal. The left side collision determination unit 65 includes AND blocks 65a and 65b and an OR block 65c. The AND block 65a is a block that takes the logical product of the output of the safing sensor output processing unit 60 and the output of the left side collision sensor output processing unit 62. The AND block 65 b is a block that takes the logical product of the output of the left side collision sensor output processing unit 62 and the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. The OR block 65c is a block that takes the logical sum of the outputs of the AND blocks 65a and 65b.

  The right airbag activation circuit 7 is a circuit for activating and deploying the right airbag 9 based on a drive signal from the microcomputer 6. The right airbag activation circuit 7 has an input terminal connected to the microcomputer 6 and an output terminal connected to the right airbag 9. Left air bag activation circuit 8 is a circuit for activating and deploying the left airbag 10 based on a drive signal from the microcomputer 6. The left airbag activation circuit 8 has an input terminal connected to the microcomputer 6 and an output terminal connected to the left airbag 10.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the right airbag 9 is disposed above the driver side door of the vehicle, and the left airbag 10 is disposed above the passenger side door. It is a protection device that prevents a collision with a vehicle interior member. The right airbag 9 is connected to the right airbag activation circuit 7, and the left airbag 10 is connected to the left airbag activation circuit 8.

  Next, a specific operation will be described with reference to FIG. When an impact is applied to the vehicle due to a head-on accident and the vehicle rotates, the yaw rate sensor 5 outputs a signal corresponding to the magnitude of the yaw rate acting on the vehicle, as shown in FIG. When the output of the yaw rate sensor 5 is equal to or greater than the yaw rate threshold, the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 outputs a high level for a certain time until a secondary collision is assumed as shown in FIG. Thereafter, for example, when a side collision occurs on the right side of the vehicle due to the rotation of the vehicle, the right side collision sensor 3 outputs a signal corresponding to the magnitude of acceleration on the right side wall of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. . When the output of the right side collision sensor 3 becomes equal to or higher than the right side collision sensor threshold, as shown in FIG. 3 (d), the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 maintains a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag. Output. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3 (e), the safing sensor 2 outputs a signal corresponding to the magnitude of acceleration at the center of the vehicle. However, in the case of a side collision due to a secondary collision, the acceleration at the center of the vehicle is small and does not exceed the safing sensor threshold. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 3F, the safing sensor output processing unit 60 outputs a low level. The right side collision determination unit 64 calculates the logical product of the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 and the output of the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 in the AND block 64b, and outputs the logical product through the OR block. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3G, the right side collision determination unit 64 is at a high level from when the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 outputs a high level to when the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 is at a low level. Is output. This output is input to the right airbag activation circuit 7, and the right airbag activation circuit 7 deploys the right airbag 9 to protect the occupant.

  Here, a case where a side collision occurs on the right side of the vehicle in the secondary collision is described, but a left side collision sensor 4, a left side collision sensor output processing unit 62, and a left side collision determination unit are also used when a side collision occurs on the left side of the vehicle. The left airbag 10 is similarly deployed by the 65 and the left airbag activation circuit 8 to protect the occupant.

  Finally, specific effects will be described. According to the first embodiment, the airbag device 1 can determine the rotation of the vehicle based on the yaw rate acting on the vehicle detected by the yaw rate sensor 5. Further, by comparing the acceleration in the vicinity of the side wall of the vehicle detected by the side collision sensors 3 and 4 while a certain time elapses from when the vehicle rotates until a secondary collision is assumed, 2 A side collision in the next collision can be detected. Further, the airbags 9 and 10 can be activated based on the detection result of the side collision in the secondary collision. Therefore, it is possible to reliably detect a side collision in the secondary collision and protect the occupant.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, the block diagram of the airbag apparatus in 2nd Embodiment is shown in FIG. 4, and the waveform of each part is shown in FIG. Here, only a different part from the airbag apparatus in 1st Embodiment is demonstrated, and description except a required part is abbreviate | omitted about a common part. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and demonstrated to the element same as the said embodiment.

  First, a specific structure will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 outputs a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag when the output of the right side collision sensor 3 is equal to or greater than the right side collision sensor threshold value. This is a block, and includes a threshold setting unit 61a and a comparison unit 61b. The threshold setting unit 61 a is a block that switches the setting of the right side collision sensor threshold according to the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. The right side collision sensor threshold value is normally set to a first right side collision sensor threshold value (second acceleration threshold value) corresponding to the acceleration of the right side of the vehicle at the time of a side collision of the vehicle that can determine a side collision of the vehicle. And when the output of the vehicle rotation determination part 63 becomes a high level, a right side collision sensor threshold value is switched to the 2nd right side collision sensor threshold value (3rd acceleration threshold value) smaller than a 1st right side collision sensor threshold value. The comparison unit 61b is a block that compares the output of the right side collision sensor 3 with the right side collision sensor threshold set by the threshold setting unit 61a.

  The left side collision sensor output processing unit 62 is a block that outputs a high level for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag when the output of the left side collision sensor 4 is equal to or greater than the left side collision sensor threshold, and a threshold setting unit 62a and a comparison unit 62b. The threshold setting unit 62 a is a block that switches the setting of the left side collision sensor threshold according to the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63. The left side collision sensor threshold value is normally set to a first left side collision sensor threshold value (second acceleration threshold value) corresponding to the acceleration of the left side of the vehicle at the time of a side collision of the vehicle that can determine a side collision of the vehicle. When the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 becomes a high level, the left side collision sensor threshold value is switched to a second left side collision sensor threshold value (third acceleration threshold value) smaller than the first left side collision sensor threshold value. The comparison unit 62b is a block that compares the output of the left side collision sensor 4 with the left side collision sensor threshold set by the threshold setting unit 62a.

  Next, a specific operation will be described with reference to FIG. When an impact is applied to the vehicle due to a head-on accident and the vehicle rotates, the yaw rate sensor 5 outputs a signal corresponding to the magnitude of the yaw rate acting on the vehicle, as shown in FIG. When the output of the yaw rate sensor 5 becomes equal to or greater than the yaw rate threshold, the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 outputs a high level for a certain period of time until a secondary collision is assumed, as shown in FIG. When the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 becomes a high level, the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 sets the right side collision sensor threshold value from the first right side collision sensor threshold value to the second right side collision sensor value that is smaller than the first right side collision sensor threshold value. Switch to sensor threshold. Further, the left side collision sensor output processing unit 62 switches the left side collision sensor threshold value from the first left side collision sensor threshold value to a second left side collision sensor threshold value that is smaller than the first left side collision sensor threshold value. Thereafter, for example, when a side collision occurs on the right side of the vehicle due to the rotation of the vehicle, the right side collision sensor 3 outputs a signal corresponding to the magnitude of acceleration on the right side wall of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. . When the output of the right side collision sensor 3 becomes equal to or greater than the second right side collision sensor threshold, as shown in FIG. 5D, the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 is high for a certain period of time sufficient to deploy the airbag. Output level. At this time, as shown in FIG.5 (e), the safing sensor 2 outputs the signal according to the magnitude | size of the acceleration in the center part of a vehicle. However, in the case of a side collision due to a secondary collision, the acceleration at the center of the vehicle is small and does not exceed the safing sensor threshold. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 5F, the safing sensor output processing unit 60 outputs a low level. The right side collision determination unit 64 calculates the logical product of the output of the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 and the output of the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 in the AND block 64b, and outputs the logical product through the OR block. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5G, the right side collision determination unit 64 has a high level from when the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61 outputs a high level until the vehicle rotation determination unit 63 becomes a low level. Is output. This output is input to the right airbag activation circuit 7, and the right airbag activation circuit 7 deploys the right airbag 9 to protect the occupant.

  Here, a case where a side collision occurs on the right side of the vehicle in the secondary collision is described, but a left side collision sensor 4, a left side collision sensor output processing unit 62, and a left side collision determination unit are also used when a side collision occurs on the left side of the vehicle. The left airbag 10 is similarly deployed by the 65 and the left airbag activation circuit 8 to protect the occupant.

  Finally, specific effects will be described. According to the second embodiment, the airbag apparatus 1 can determine the rotation of the vehicle based on the yaw rate acting on the vehicle detected by the yaw rate sensor 5. In addition, the acceleration in the vicinity of the side wall of the vehicle detected by the side collision sensors 3 and 4 during a fixed time after the vehicle rotates until a secondary collision is assumed is smaller than the first side collision sensor threshold. By comparing with the collision sensor threshold value, the side collision in the secondary collision can be detected earlier. Further, the airbags 9 and 10 can be activated based on the detection result of the side collision in the secondary collision. Therefore, the side collision in the secondary collision can be detected more quickly and reliably, and the passenger can be protected quickly.

  In the first and second embodiments described above, the safing sensor output processing unit 60, the right side collision sensor output processing unit 61, the left side collision sensor output processing unit 62, the vehicle rotation determination unit 63, the right side collision determination unit. 64 and the left side collision determination unit 65 are realized by the microcomputer 6 and a program, but are not limited thereto. For example, you may comprise these with an electronic circuit.

The block diagram of the airbag apparatus in 1st Embodiment is shown. The arrangement | positioning of the sensor and airbag in 1st Embodiment is shown. The waveform of each part in 1st Embodiment is shown. The block diagram of the airbag apparatus in 2nd Embodiment is shown. The waveform of each part in 2nd Embodiment is shown.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Airbag apparatus (occupant protection apparatus for vehicles), 2 ... Safety sensor (1st acceleration sensor), 3 ... Right side collision sensor (2nd acceleration sensor), 4 ... Left side collision sensor (second acceleration sensor), 5 ... yaw rate sensor, 6 ... microcomputer, 60 ... safing sensor output processing unit, 60a ... threshold setting unit, 60b ... comparison 61 ... right side collision sensor output processing unit, 61a ... threshold setting unit, 61b ... comparison unit, 62 ... left side collision sensor output processing unit, 62a ... threshold setting unit, 62b ... Comparison unit, 63 ... Vehicle rotation determination unit (vehicle rotation determination unit), 63a ... Threshold setting unit, 63b ... Comparison unit, 64 ... Right side collision determination unit (side collision determination unit) ), 64a, 64b ... AND block, 64c ..OR block, 65... Left side collision determination unit (side collision determination means), 65a, 65b... AND block, 65c... OR block, 7. Activating means), 8... Left airbag activation circuit (occupant protection device activation means), 9... Right airbag (occupant protection device), 10... Left airbag (occupant protection device)

Claims (2)

A first acceleration sensor disposed in a central portion of the vehicle for detecting lateral acceleration of the vehicle; a second acceleration sensor disposed in a side portion of the vehicle for detecting lateral acceleration of the vehicle; When the acceleration detected by the first acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined first acceleration threshold value and the acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined second acceleration threshold value, the vehicle has a side collision. A vehicle occupant comprising side collision determination means for determining and occupant protection device activation means for activating an occupant protection device for protecting an occupant of the vehicle when the side collision determination means determines that the vehicle has undergone a side collision. In the protective device,
And a yaw rate sensor that detects a yaw rate acting on the vehicle, and a vehicle rotation determination unit that determines that the vehicle is rotating when the yaw rate detected by the yaw rate sensor is greater than or equal to a predetermined yaw rate threshold value.
The side collision determination unit is configured such that an acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is equal to or greater than a predetermined second acceleration threshold value after a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle rotation determination unit determined that the vehicle is rotating. When it is, it determines with the said vehicle having side-collised in the secondary collision, The passenger | crew protection device for vehicles characterized by the above-mentioned. A first acceleration sensor disposed in a central portion of the vehicle for detecting lateral acceleration of the vehicle; a second acceleration sensor disposed in a side portion of the vehicle for detecting lateral acceleration of the vehicle; When the acceleration detected by the first acceleration sensor is greater than or equal to a predetermined first acceleration threshold and the acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is greater than or equal to a predetermined second acceleration threshold, the vehicle has a side collision. A vehicle occupant comprising side collision determination means for determining and occupant protection device activation means for activating an occupant protection device for protecting an occupant of the vehicle when the side collision determination means determines that the vehicle has undergone a side collision. In the protective device,
And a yaw rate sensor that detects a yaw rate acting on the vehicle, and a vehicle rotation determination unit that determines that the vehicle is rotating when the yaw rate detected by the yaw rate sensor is greater than or equal to a predetermined yaw rate threshold value.
The side collision determination unit is configured such that an acceleration detected by the second acceleration sensor is equal to the predetermined second acceleration threshold value after a predetermined time has elapsed since the vehicle rotation determination unit determined that the vehicle is rotating. The vehicle occupant protection device according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle is determined to have undergone a side collision in a secondary collision when it is equal to or greater than a smaller predetermined third acceleration threshold value.

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