Content provided in partnership with

Automotive Industry

Single Vision

Automotive Industries, Oct, 1999 by Dale Jewett

Donnelly Corp.'s rear-view cameras could help drivers and boost fuel economy. But the system still needs development.

The advanced technology that permeates vehicles today has spread far as to include rear view mirrors.

Within the last several years, mirrors have gained the ability to defrost, automatically dim when another vehicle approaches, tilt downward to aid in backing up and even signal a turn to other drivers.

Yet for all these advancements, drivers still are hampered by blind spots. Automakers have been slowly increasing mirror size to compensate, but at the cost of higher aerodynamic drag and lower fuel economy.

Most Popular Articles in Autos: Service Slants; 2007 utility vehicle buyer's guide: Side-By-Sides are popular; here's who ...; Transmission considerations: beyond the manual gearbox; Buell Motorcycle engineering, innovation, & dedication: in an industry ...; 100 + 10: America's oldest automotive magazine celebrates its 110th year ...; More »

The solution, engineers at mirror supplier Donnelly Corp. believe, is to the get rid of the mirrors altogether, replacing them with miniature, computerized cameras.

The idea is not new. Rear-view cameras have been among the gizmos on automakers' concept vehicles for more than a decade.

What has changed is the cost of the components, which Donnelly claims has dropped dramatically, and what the company believes is its competitive advantage: proprietary software that merges the images from the cameras into a unified picture for the driver.

The Holland, Mich.-based supplier signed development contracts with automakers in the U.S. and Europe last November, spokesman Randy Bollieu says, but no production contracts have been signed.

To be production viable, total cost of the system needs to drop below $1,000 for a luxury vehicle, Bollieu says. Donnelly is close to achieving that goal, he claims, aided in part by its 25% ownership of a CMOS (pronounced SEE-moss) manufacturer in Scotland. CMOS -- Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor -- is the type of computer chip used in the camera. CMOS chips require less power than chips using just one type of transistor. This makes them particularly attractive for use in compact battery-powered devices, such as portable computers, and the camera.

AI recently sampled the rear-view camera system, fitted to one of Donnelly's test vehicles. The BMW 5-Series sedan looks stock when viewed from a distance, but upon closer inspection you realize that the door mirrors have been replaced by CMOS computer cameras, mounted in body-color housings. Two additional cameras are integrated into the CHMSL in the decklid -- one camera looks rearward, the other looks downward to aid the driver when the car is shifted into reverse.

Inside, the rear-view mirror has been replaced by a rectangular, 17-inch fiat-panel display from Sharp Electronics. The merged rear view takes up the bottom two-thirds of the screen. The top third, Bollieu suggests, is ideal for displaying information such as outside temperature, compass, radio stations and navigation instructions.

With aerodynamic drag reduced via the close-mounted CMOS cameras, vehicle fuel economy can be increased 2% to 3%, Bollieu says. "It also frees up the designers to be more creative," he notes.

In actual driving, the system takes some getting used to. Glances toward a doormounted mirror are instinctive, and the "TV effect" of the display tends to coax the driver into staring at the monitor longer than he would at a conventional mirror. "People will have to get used to it," Bollieu notes.

Hurdles remain. Images at night are not as clear, and are a bit off color. Much of the system cost is contained in the viewing screen, which could get smaller. Donnelly is looking at air jets or heaters to clean off the camera lenses during rain or snow. These would probably add cost.

In early vehicle applications, the rear vision system will likely be installed as a backup to conventional mirrors, Bollieu says.

Automotive Industry

Single Vision

Automotive Industries, Oct, 1999 by Dale Jewett

Find Research Guides for:

Find Featured Titles for: Sports

Most Popular Articles in Autos

Most Popular Publications in Autos