Door Mirror Rotation Layout for Compact Storage and Low Vibration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional door mirror devices fail to adequately reduce vehicle width in the mirror-storage state, lead to excessive mirror vibrations during vehicle travel, and hinder visibility from the cabin due to the large size of the electromotive rotational unit.
Innovation Solution
The door mirror device incorporates an electromotive rotational unit positioned inside the side door, with a control portion that rotates the door-mirror body portion and mirror base between use and storage positions, minimizing protrusion and reducing vibrations, while also allowing for precise mirror-angle adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If the electromotive rotational unit is stored inside the door-mirror body portion, then the door mirror can be automatically rotated between use and storage positions, but the longitudinal width of the door-mirror body portion becomes large, hindering visibility from the cabin inside
Solution Approach 1:
The electromotive rotational unit is extracted from the door-mirror body portion and installed in the door panel instead. This extraction removes the source of longitudinal width increase from the door-mirror body portion, allowing automatic rotation functionality to be preserved while improving visibility from the cabin inside by eliminating the protruding structure.
2Extent of automation
If the electromotive rotational unit is stored inside the door-mirror body portion, then the door mirror can be automatically rotated, but the moment applied in vertical direction becomes large, causing excessive vibrations of the mirror during vehicle traveling
Solution Approach 1:
The electromotive rotational unit is extracted from the door-mirror body portion and repositioned in the door panel. This relocation changes the moment arm in the vertical direction, reducing the applied moment and consequently suppressing mirror vibrations during vehicle traveling while maintaining the automatic rotation capability.
3Ease of operation
If the door-mirror body portion is rotated at the tip-end portion of the mirror base, then the mirror can be positioned for use and storage, but the mirror base protrudes from the door panel in storage state, failing to reduce vehicle width sufficiently
Solution Approach 1:
The rotational axis is repositioned from the tip-end portion of the mirror base to the base-end portion of the mirror base. This dimensional change in the rotation mechanism allows the mirror base to rotate about a different pivot point, enabling the tip-end portion to retract closer to the door panel in the storage state, thereby reducing the protrusion and vehicle width more effectively while preserving mirror positioning functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A door mirror device comprises a door-mirror body portion, a mirror base having a tip-end portion fixed to the door-mirror body portion, an electromotive rotational unit provided to rotate the door-mirror body portion and the mirror base between a mirror-use position and a mirror-storage position, and a control portion to control the electromotive rotational unit. The electromotive rotational unit is provided inside a side door. The control portion controls the electromotive rotational unit such that the door-mirror body portion and the mirror base are rotated in a prescribed minute range centered at the mirror-use position so as to change an angle of a mirror when a mirror-face adjusting signal is inputted.