Vehicle Camera Assembly with Retractable Housing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Large side rear view mirrors on vehicles increase wind resistance and negatively impact fuel economy, while providing adequate side and rear visibility.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a vehicle camera assembly with a moveable video camera and display system that captures and processes images of areas outside the vehicle, allowing for a retracted and extended orientation to replace traditional mirrors, thereby reducing wind resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If large side rear view mirrors are used to provide adequate side and rear visibility, then visibility is improved, but wind resistance increases and fuel economy deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical mirror system with an electronic camera-based imaging system. Cameras mounted on the vehicle capture images that are displayed on screens within the passenger compartment, substituting the physical mirror structure with an electronic visualization system that creates minimal aerodynamic drag
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates visual copies of the rear and side views through camera imaging and displays these copies on screens inside the vehicle. This allows the driver to see reflected areas without requiring physical mirrors that extend into the airflow path
2Reliability
If large side rear view mirrors are used to provide adequate side and rear visibility, then visibility is improved, but fuel economy worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical mirror system with an electronic camera-based imaging system. Cameras mounted on the vehicle capture images that are displayed on screens within the passenger compartment, substituting the physical mirror structure with an electronic visualization system that creates minimal aerodynamic drag
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates visual copies of the rear and side views through camera imaging and displays these copies on screens inside the vehicle. This allows the driver to see reflected areas without requiring physical mirrors that extend into the airflow path
3Reliability
If the video camera is extended outward from the vehicle body to capture external views, then visibility is improved, but wind resistance increases
Solution Approach 1:
The camera assembly is designed with movable components that can extend and retract. The housing can move between retracted and extended positions, allowing the system to optimize between visibility requirements and aerodynamic efficiency based on operating conditions
Solution Approach 2:
The camera system is divided into separate movable components including the housing, lens assembly, and support structures. This segmentation allows independent movement of each component to optimize positioning for visibility while minimizing aerodynamic impact when retracted
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle includes a vehicle body structure and a video camera assembly. The video camera assembly includes a base member, a video camera, a video display and an image processor. The base member is fixedly mounted to a side surface of the vehicle. The video camera is moveably supported to the base member for movement between a retracted orientation adjacent to the side surface and an extended orientation extended outward away from the side surface to capture a video image of an area outside the vehicle. The video display is supported within the vehicle such that the video display is visible within a passenger compartment of the vehicle. The image processor is operatively coupled to the video camera and the video display to process the video image captured by the video camera and to stream a video view to the video display.