Vehicular Mirror Toggle Assembly with Integral Spring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing interior rearview mirror assemblies for vehicles do not effectively reduce glare and brightness during nighttime driving conditions, as they lack a mechanism to adjust the viewing angle of the prismatic reflective element efficiently.
Innovation Solution
An interior rearview mirror assembly with a toggle assembly that includes a toggle lever integrally formed with the mirror casing and a spring element, allowing the prismatic reflective element to pivot between direct and offset reflection viewing angles, reducing glare and brightness by adjusting the angle of the reflective element relative to the mirror casing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a prismatic reflective element is used in the mirror assembly, then the mirror can provide daytime and nighttime reflectivity positions, but the assembly lacks an effective mechanism to adjust the viewing angle of the reflective element to reduce glare during nighttime driving
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the toggle lever, spring element, and mirror casing into an integrated assembly where the toggle lever is pivotally connected to the mirror casing. This merging of components allows the viewing angle adjustment function to be integrated with the existing daytime/nighttime reflectivity position mechanism, enabling glare reduction without requiring a separate complex adjustment system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a spring element that provides resilient biasing force to the toggle lever, enabling dynamic adjustment of the reflective element's viewing angle. The spring allows the toggle lever to pivot between different positions, dynamically adjusting the mirror angle to reduce glare while maintaining ease of operation through simple manual toggling.
2Device complexity
If the toggle lever is integrally formed with the mirror casing, then the structure is simplified, but the mechanism needs additional components like spring elements to enable viewing angle adjustment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the mirror casing into a fixed portion and a movable rear section, with the toggle lever pivotally connected between them. This segmentation allows the viewing angle adjustment function to be added without completely redesigning the integrated structure, maintaining structural simplicity while enabling the needed adaptability for glare reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring element acts as an intermediary component between the toggle lever and the movable rear section of the mirror casing. It provides the necessary mechanical advantage and resilient force to enable viewing angle adjustment while maintaining the integral formation of the toggle lever with the mirror casing, thus preserving structural simplicity while adding adjustment capability.
3Ease of operation
If the spring element is disposed between the toggle lever and the movable rear section, then viewing angle adjustment is enabled, but the assembly requires additional components beyond the integral formation
Solution Approach 1:
The spring element serves multiple functions: it provides resilient biasing force for the toggle lever, enables viewing angle adjustment, and maintains the mechanical connection between the toggle lever and movable rear section. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, minimizing the increase in device complexity while achieving ease of operation for viewing angle adjustment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces glare and brightness during nighttime driving by allowing the prismatic reflective element to be positioned at an offset viewing angle, improving the driver's visibility and comfort by minimizing reflected light.
Implementation Method 1
A spring element (such as a metallic spring element or a plastic or polymeric spring element) is disposed between the toggle lever and a movable rear section of the mirror casing
Implementation Method 2
The toggle assembly includes a toggle lever integrally formed with a lower edge or portion of the mirror casing, whereby a living hinge is formed between the toggle lever and the mirror casing
Implementation Method 3
pivoting the toggle lever about the living hinge adjusts the angle of the prismatic reflective element relative to the movable rear section
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicular interior rearview mirror assembly includes a mirror casing and a reflective element, with the mirror casing adjustably supported at a mirror mount at an interior surface of the vehicle. The mirror casing includes a principal mirror casing portion and a pivotable mirror casing portion that is pivotable relative to the principal mirror casing portion. The reflective element is accommodated at the principal mirror casing portion. An upper portion of the pivotable mirror casing portion is integrally joined with the principal mirror casing portion at an upper region of the principal mirror casing portion. A spring element is coupled to the pivotable mirror casing portion and to a lower region of the principal mirror casing portion. The spring element flexes to adjust an angle of the principal mirror casing portion and the reflective element relative to the pivotable mirror casing portion of the mirror casing.