HEATED REARVIEW MIRROR ASSEMBLY
First Claim
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1. A resistance heated rear view mirror assembly for a motor vehicle, comprising:
- an electrically conductive motor support adapted to be mounted exterior of the vehicle in grounding relationship therewith;
a housing on said mirror support having a generally rearwardly opening cavity, a ball stud connected to said mirror support and disposed interior of said cavity;
a generally rectangular mirror element having a low thermal and electrical conductivity;
a backing plate universally frictionally supported on said ball stud said backing plate being directly adhesively attached to the forwardly facing surface of said mirror element for thereby electrically insulating the latter from said mirror support while permitting adjustable universal movement of said mirror element about said ball stud within the confines of said cavity;
a nontransmissive, electrically conductive reflective coating on the rearwardly facing exterior surface of said mirror element for establishing a rearward viewing surface, said coating being exposed to moisture in varying forms during inclement weather, switch means disposed interior of the vehicle;
an elongated first current distributing contact secured along one edge of said mirror element in electrical contact with said coating;
first conductor means electrically connecting said first current distributing contact in series with said power source and said switch means; and
an elongated second current distributing contact secured along the opposite edge of said mirror element in electrical contact with said coating;
second conductor means electrically connecting said second current distributing contact in electrical grounding relationship with said mirror support thereby establishing a uniform current path between said contacts and throughout the major portion of the viewing surface, whereby closing said switch means passes a heating current through said reflective coating to rapidly raise the temperature of the latter above the prevailing dew point temperature thereby removing any moisture accumulating on the coating, the low-thermal conductivity of said mirror element serving to retain heat at the coating to improve the thermal efficiency of the mirror assembly.
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Abstract
A rearview mirror assembly for a motor vehicle wherein a mirror element is provided with a nontransmissive, electrically conductive reflective coating across the exterior viewing surface. Elongated contacts extending along the top and bottom edges of the coating provide a uniform current path across the coating when an electrical potential is applied thereacross to directly resistance heat the coating. The low-thermal conductivity of the mirror element acts as an insulating barrier which serves to retain heat at the coating, thereby improving the thermal efficiency of the assembly. A backing plate, adhesively attached the other surface of the mirror element, mounts the mirror element on a ball stud located within the cavity of a mirror support housing on the exterior of the vehicle, thereby permitting adjustable universal movement of the mirror element about the ball stud within confines of the cavity. A manual control switch is provided for selectively applying heating current to the coating.
14 Citations
1 Claim
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1. A resistance heated rear view mirror assembly for a motor vehicle, comprising:
- an electrically conductive motor support adapted to be mounted exterior of the vehicle in grounding relationship therewith;
a housing on said mirror support having a generally rearwardly opening cavity, a ball stud connected to said mirror support and disposed interior of said cavity;
a generally rectangular mirror element having a low thermal and electrical conductivity;
a backing plate universally frictionally supported on said ball stud said backing plate being directly adhesively attached to the forwardly facing surface of said mirror element for thereby electrically insulating the latter from said mirror support while permitting adjustable universal movement of said mirror element about said ball stud within the confines of said cavity;
a nontransmissive, electrically conductive reflective coating on the rearwardly facing exterior surface of said mirror element for establishing a rearward viewing surface, said coating being exposed to moisture in varying forms during inclement weather, switch means disposed interior of the vehicle;
an elongated first current distributing contact secured along one edge of said mirror element in electrical contact with said coating;
first conductor means electrically connecting said first current distributing contact in series with said power source and said switch means; and
an elongated second current distributing contact secured along the opposite edge of said mirror element in electrical contact with said coating;
second conductor means electrically connecting said second current distributing contact in electrical grounding relationship with said mirror support thereby establishing a uniform current path between said contacts and throughout the major portion of the viewing surface, whereby closing said switch means passes a heating current through said reflective coating to rapidly raise the temperature of the latter above the prevailing dew point temperature thereby removing any moisture accumulating on the coating, the low-thermal conductivity of said mirror element serving to retain heat at the coating to improve the thermal efficiency of the mirror assembly.
- an electrically conductive motor support adapted to be mounted exterior of the vehicle in grounding relationship therewith;
Specification
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Current AssigneeHarold E. Todd, Lloyd T. Fuqua
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Original AssigneeHarold E. Todd, Lloyd T. Fuqua
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InventorsTodd, Harold E., Fuqua, Lloyd T.
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Primary Examiner(s)Bartis, A.
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Application NumberUS05/019,943Time in Patent Office624 DaysField of Search219/219,543,203 338/306-309 350/61,288,307 248/481US Class Current219/219CPC Class CodesH05B 3/845 specially adapted for refle...
