Vehicle inside mirror device for displaying image

• US 8,482,683 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2010
• Issued: 07/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SMR Patents Sarl (SMR Patents)
• Original Assignee: SMR Patents Sarl (SMR Patents)
• Inventors: Hwang, Hyok-Joo, Lim, Soo Jin, Choi, Jin Gee
• Primary Examiner(s): Glick, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHUNG, DAVID Y
• Application Number:
  US12/780,887
• Publication Number:
  US 20100289995A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,151 Days
• Field of Search: 349/5, 349/11, 349/58, 349/149
• US Class Current: 349/11
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/00 Optical viewing arrangements; Real-time viewing arrangements for drivers or passengers using optical image capturing systems, e.g. cameras or video systems specially adapted for use in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/12 Mirror assemblies combined with other articles, e.g. clocks
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/26 to the rear of the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2001/1253 with cameras, video cameras or video screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2300/20 characterised by the type of display used

Abstract

A vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image, which can obtain an enhanced mirror function of a prismatic glass caused by a black film provided at a rear side of a prismatic glass and has a relatively simple structure made by forming directly a transflective layer on a rear surface of a prismatic glass without using a substrate. The vehicle inside mirror device comprises a housing mounted in a passenger compartment of a vehicle; a prismatic glass provided on a front side of the housing and having a transparent transflective layer formed on a rear surface thereof; a black film provided at a rear side of the prismatic glass and having an opening formed on one side thereof; a liquid crystal display (LCD) module provided at a rear side of the opening of the black film; and a control circuit unit installed at a rear side of the LCD module.

Claims

1. A vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image, the vehicle inside mirror device comprising:

a housing mounted in a passenger compartment of a vehicle;

a prismatic glass provided on a front side of the housing and having a transparent transflective layer formed on a rear surface thereof;

a liquid crystal display (LCD) module provided at the rear surface of the prismatic glass covering a portion of the rear surface of the prismatic glass;

a black film provided at the rear surface of the prismatic glass and having an opening formed therein corresponding to the portion of the rear surface covered by the LCD module, the black film covering all of the rear surface not covered by the LCD module; and

a control circuit unit installed at a rear side of the LCD module with the control circuit unit including a regulator electrically connected to a power source, an A/D convertor electrically connected to an illumination sensor and a camera, a microcontroller unit electrically connected to the A/D convertor, a backlight unit connected to the regulator and the microcontroller unit and generating backlight, an EEPROM (electrically erasable and programmable read only memory) electrically connected to the microcontroller unit, an interface connected to the EEPROM, and a LCD driver electrically connected to the interface and having an output terminal connected to the LCD module.

2. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, further comprising a stay connected to a rear side of the housing for mounting the housing to a vehicle body.

3. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a frame mounted to a front side thereof along an edge of the prismatic glass and a heat-radiating aperture formed thereon for radiating heat emitting from the LCD module and the control circuit unit to an outside thereof.

4. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, wherein the LCD module has a front surface having a black color to remove a difference in color between the black film and the LCD module exposed through the opening of the black film.

5. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, wherein the LCD module comprises a frame provided along an edge thereof to provide an electromagnetic interference (EMI) performance.

6. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, wherein the micro control unit calculates the luminance in a passenger compartment of the vehicle on the basis of the signal inputted from the illumination sensor and controls a brightness of the light emitted from the backlight unit according to the calculating result to make a brightness of the light emitted from the backlight unit become brighter than that of the light reflected from the transflective layer and the prismatic glass, whereby although the external light (image) is reflected to an outside by the transflective layer, a viewer can view and recognize the image generated in and displayed on the LCD module and passed through the transflective layer.

7. The vehicle inside mirror device for displaying an image of claim 1, wherein the micro control unit controls the LCD module to display an image regarding the image data transmitted from the camera and a distance between the vehicle and an object placed at a rear side of the vehicle.