Development of Advanced Rear View Mirrors that takes out blind spots

The good old rear view mirrors have survived for decades now with little change in their original design, which allows for a 15 to 17 degree view behind the driver, a view that is quite limited. Curved mirrors offer much more visibility by increasing the angle of view. The downside to this obviously is the fact that you’ll be staring into a distorted and often funny image. Ever visited the magic mirrors corner of the local fair? Well, a curved mirror could actually distort things quite a bit and this is a reason why many countries necessitate flat mirrors only in vehicles.

Professor Andrew Hicks' Improved Rear View Mirror

Car makers, especially the high end ones have gotten around this problem by using expensive sensors that allow for blind spot indication systems that alert the driver to vehicles pulling alongside the car, if the mirror does not allow for displaying such vehicles. However these systems are still too expensive for use in the inexpensive cars segment, a segment which makes for the majority of the vehicular population across the world. That makes the innovation that inventor and mathematics professor at Drexel University, Andrew R.Hicks has made, quite special.

Professor Hicks has invented a slightly curved mirrors which does not distort the image like other curved mirrors while offering a whopping 45 degree view of the happenings on the rear of the car. This mirror features a surface that has many smaller mirrors that function like disco balls to work together through an algorithm that allows the mirror to display a significantly wider angle than conventional rear view mirrors. The mirror that Professor Hicks has invented has already been patented with many companies showing interest in this technology.

Professor Andrew Hicks' Improved Rear View Mirror

Such a mirror in Indian cars could be a veritable godsend given the wayward traffic that most car drivers have to struggle with, day in and day out. Also, such a mirror would be much more cost effective than expensive blind spot indication systems or radars that high end cars come with. More importantly, such a mirror would make roads much more safer by preventing accidents, as India is a country with a very high two wheeler population, who often get involved in accidents due to them being in the blind spots and thereby invisible to the car driver. Whatever be the case, this is one exciting new invention in the automobile space that is well worth exploring further.


Courtesy: Yahoo Auto