JPH01249543A - Back mirror - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To reduce the total area of rearview mirror to the travel direction of an automobile to decrease air resistance, by dividing a reflecting surface into at least two separate reflecting mirrors, and also positioning the respective reflecting mirrors on different surfaces in a solid space. CONSTITUTION: In a rearview mirror to be arranged in the oblique front of a driver's seat (view point 3) in the vicinity of the side part outer edge line 2 of an automobile, the reflecting surface is divided into two reflecting mirrors 4 and 5. The second mirror 5 is arranged closer than the first reflecting mirror 4 to the driver's seat, and the visibilities of these two reflecting mirrors 4 and 5 are made to be adjoined and continued with each other to one visibility when seen from the driver's seat. That is, both the mirrors 4 and 5 are positioned so that an incident beam 6, a visual line from the view point 3, can pass through both the left edge of the mirror 4 and the right edge of the mirror 5. Also the incident angle and reflecting angle in the mirror 4 and a visual angle from the driver's seat are set smaller respectively than the values in the mirror 5 corresponding to these angles.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is used in the technical field of automobile rearview mirrors,
In particular, attachment to the vehicle body in front of the driver's seat is a positional issue.

[Conventional technology]

In order to reduce the fuel consumption and improve the driving characteristics of automobiles, attempts have been made, especially in passenger cars, to reduce air resistance during driving as much as possible. Therefore, the outer surface that can protrude perpendicularly to the direction of travel of the vehicle must be minimized. In order to ensure safety during driving, it is mandatory for passenger cars to have a rearview mirror on the outside of the car body. The rearview mirror protrudes from the vehicle body, increasing its surface area and increasing air resistance. Rearview mirrors need to have a considerable width in the horizontal direction to provide sufficient visibility. Furthermore, the sides of the car body are curved in the front-rear direction, and the rearview mirror must be placed in front of the widest part of the car body, so in order to be able to see directly behind the car body, Rearview mirrors must be placed outward from the side outer edge line of the vehicle.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

Rearview mirrors arranged in the above-mentioned positions are located in such a position that they cause an increase in air resistance, are also an obstacle to driving, and are easily damaged. These pose a risk of collision with unprotected pedestrians and other objects on the road.

The present invention aims to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems and provide a rearview mirror that provides a wide field of view without increasing the width.

[Means for Solving the Problems] According to the present invention, the above object is achieved by dividing the reflecting surface of the rearview mirror into at least two separate reflecting mirrors, and both reflecting mirrors being located at different planes in three-dimensional space. located, achieved by.

[Function] When the rearview mirror of the present invention is attached to the outer surface of a vehicle body where the widest part of the vehicle body is located at the rear position of the rearview mirror,
The divided first reflecting mirror and second reflecting mirror are close to the vehicle body and ensure sufficient visibility.

In particular, in a car body where the widest part of the car body is located behind the rearview mirror, the second reflector is designed to connect the tangent line at the widest part parallel to the center line of symmetry of the car body width to the side outer edge line of the car body. The features of the present invention can be fully exhibited if the first reflecting mirror is located between the first and second reflecting mirrors and is located on the opposite side of the second reflecting mirror with respect to the tangent.

[Example] Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic partial plan view of a passenger car with a side edge line 2 to the left of a central line of symmetry 1. FIG.

The rearview mirror 4.5 is disposed diagonally in front of the driver's seat (viewpoint 3) near the side outer edge line 2 of the passenger car.

The reflective surface of the rearview mirror is divided into at least two parts, namely a first reflector 4 and a second reflector 5, the first reflector 4 is far away from the driver's seat 3, and the second reflector 5 is It is located closer to the driver's seat 3 than the first reflecting mirror 4.

When viewed from the driver's seat 3, the fields of view of these two reflectors 4.5 are adjacent to the pressure and appear continuous and unified. That is, both reflecting mirrors 4.5 are positioned so that the incident light ray 6, which is the line of sight from the viewpoint in the driver's seat 3, passes through both the left edge of the first reflecting mirror 4 and the right edge 5 of the second reflecting mirror. There is. The reflected light ray 7 on the first reflecting mirror 4 and the reflected light ray 8 on the second reflecting mirror 5 due to the incident light ray 6 are parallel to each other. That is, the angle between the incident light ray 6 and the reflected light ray 7 is equal to the angle between the incident light ray 6 and the reflected light ray 8. This angle is the maximum value of the angle formed by the incident light beam and the reflected light beam at the first reflecting mirror 4 when viewed from the driver's seat 3. At the same time, when viewed from the driver's seat 3, the angle formed by the incident light beam and the reflected light beam at the second reflecting mirror 5 becomes the minimum value. Therefore, in the first reflecting mirror 4, the angles formed between the incident light beam from the driver's seat 3 and the reflected light beam at all other positions other than the left edge are smaller than the similar angles in the second reflecting mirror 5. Even though the side outer edge line 2 of the vehicle body is curved in a convex manner as shown in the figure, the first reflector 4 is placed at a position where the rear can be seen directly, that is, at a position ahead of the widest part of the vehicle body. is preferred. The second reflecting mirror 5 is parallel to the central line of symmetry 1 and connects a tangent line 9 at the widest part of the vehicle body to a side outer edge line 2 of the vehicle body.
placed between. By doing this, the tangent line 9
Consistent with this, the second reflecting mirror 5 does not block the light ray 10 that enters from the rear, is reflected by the first reflecting mirror 4, and reaches the driver's seat 3.

The first reflecting mirror 4 is also provided on the vehicle body at a symmetrical position on the opposite side to the central symmetry line 9, so that the rear can be directly confirmed. The field of view from the driver's seat 3 is the second reflector 5.
, the first reflecting mirror 4 becomes wider than the illustrated portion 11.
The field of view is the same as that of a single rearview mirror, as if it had been expanded to a wide area.

Attaching the rearview mirror having the reflective mirror surfaces 4 and 11 to the vehicle body using an attachment at a position far from the vehicle body (that is, at a position outside the tangent line 9) means that the first reflective mirror 4 and the second reflective mirror 5 according to the present invention are attached to the vehicle body using an attachment. It is clear that greater air resistance is generated than when it is attached to the vehicle body with an attachment.The second reflector 5 is smaller than the virtual reflector portion 11 (and can be brought closer to the vehicle body without blocking the view). , the space between the vehicle body and the tangent line 9 becomes available for arranging the reflector.In the conventional construction of rearview mirrors, this space was used only for the attachment.

Of course, the rearview mirror of the present invention can be divided into two or more reflecting mirrors, if necessary. If it is not necessary to see the rear in a straight line, the respective reflecting mirrors can be positioned freely relative to each other.

The series of reflectors can be arranged, for example, in rows with each other, so that the rows are parallel to the tangent line 9 or to the side edge line 2 of the vehicle body. Each reflector can also be placed in the side window portion of the vehicle body. The reflector may have a curved surface to enlarge its viewing angle.

The curved surface shape does not necessarily have to be the same for each reflecting mirror, and can be of various shapes. When the reflecting mirrors are flat, it is preferable that the reflecting mirrors are arranged parallel to each other. If the first and second reflecting mirrors are plane mirrors arranged in parallel, the fields of view corresponding to the distance between the reflected light beams 7 and 8 shown in the figure will overlap. This is of virtually no importance if the object being viewed is far away from the rearview mirror. If each reflector can be adjusted separately, both reflectors may be adjusted to prevent the above-mentioned overlapping of the fields of view for objects located at a predetermined distance from the rearview mirror. In such a case, the field of view will be separated for objects that are further away, but the field of view can be expanded further.

〔Effect of the invention〕

In the present invention, since the rearview mirror is constituted by a plurality of reflecting mirrors as described above, the total area of the rearview mirror in the direction of travel of the vehicle is reduced and it is brought closer to the vehicle body, and as a result, air resistance is reduced and the rearview mirror is moved closer to the vehicle body. Not only can performance be improved, but also the rearview mirror can be brought closer to the vehicle body, resulting in an effect that safety for pedestrians on the road can be improved. In addition to this, the visibility can be expanded, which is extremely convenient for driving.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partial plan view showing the position of the rearview mirror on the left side of the central line of symmetry of the vehicle body. 1・・・・・・・・・Central line of symmetry 2・・・・・・
......Side outer edge line 3... Viewpoint 4.5... Rearview mirror (4...
・・・・First reflecting mirror, ５・・・・・・Second reflecting mirror) ９・・・・・・・・・・・・Tangential line

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) At least two separate reflectors (4, 5
), and both reflecting mirrors are located on different planes in three-dimensional space. (2) A rearview mirror located diagonally to the vehicle body in front of the driver's seat, and of the first and second reflectors that form a reflective surface, the first reflector (4) is far away from the driver's seat. The second reflector (5) is located closer to the driver's seat than the first reflector (4), and the field of view from the driver's seat viewpoint (3) is the same as the first reflector (4) and the second reflector. (5) are adjacent to each other, and the angle of incidence, angle of reflection, and viewing angle from the driver's seat at the first reflector (4) are greater than the corresponding values at the second reflector (5). The rearview mirror according to claim 1, wherein each of the rearview mirrors is small. (3) In a car body where the widest part of the car body is located behind the rearview mirror, the second reflector (5) is connected to the tangent line (9 ) and the side outer edge line (2) of the vehicle body, and the first reflecting mirror (4) is located on the opposite side of the second reflecting mirror (5) with respect to the tangent line (9). The rearview mirror according to claim (2).