Liquid crystal type dazzle-free transmissive-reflective mirror
First Claim
1. A liquid crystal type dazzle-free rear view reflection mirror arrangement in a vehicle comprising:
- a frame body attached to said vehicle and provided with an open front end for the passage of an incident light from the rear of said vehicle;
a liquid crystal layer provided behind said open front end in said frame body for varying transmittivity of the incident light passing therethrough in dependence on an electric field applied thereto;
a semi-transparent mirror layer provided behind said liquid crystal layer in said frame body for transmitting therethrough a portion of the incident light passing through said liquid crystal layer and reflecting a portion of the incident light for generating a rear view thereon;
a photo sensor provided behind said semi-transparent mirror layer in said frame body for sensing the intensity of the incident light passing through said semi-transparent mirror layer; and
means, responsive to said photo sensor, for applying and controlling the electric field applied to said liquid crystal layer, the magnitude of the electric field being increased with the increase in the intensity of the incident light sensed by said photo sensor.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A liquid crystal type dazzle-free reflection mirror arrangement which changes reflectivity of the incident light by way of changing the transmittivity of the incident light through a liquid crystal provided within a frame body is disclosed. A semitransparent mirror is positioned behind the liquid crystal and a photo sensor is positioned behind the semitransparent mirror. When the photo sensor detects that the intensity of the incident light passing through the semitransparent mirror, an alternating current electric field is applied to the liquid crystal which responsively decreases the transmittivity of the incident light. A heater for heating the liquid crystal is activated when a door of an automobile is opened and the temperature of the liquid crystal is low.
520 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A liquid crystal type dazzle-free rear view reflection mirror arrangement in a vehicle comprising:
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a frame body attached to said vehicle and provided with an open front end for the passage of an incident light from the rear of said vehicle; a liquid crystal layer provided behind said open front end in said frame body for varying transmittivity of the incident light passing therethrough in dependence on an electric field applied thereto; a semi-transparent mirror layer provided behind said liquid crystal layer in said frame body for transmitting therethrough a portion of the incident light passing through said liquid crystal layer and reflecting a portion of the incident light for generating a rear view thereon; a photo sensor provided behind said semi-transparent mirror layer in said frame body for sensing the intensity of the incident light passing through said semi-transparent mirror layer; and means, responsive to said photo sensor, for applying and controlling the electric field applied to said liquid crystal layer, the magnitude of the electric field being increased with the increase in the intensity of the incident light sensed by said photo sensor. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A liquid crystal type dazzle-free rear view reflection mirror arrangement in an automobile comprising:
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a frame body mounted within said automobile and having a closed shape except an open front end thereof for the passage of an incident light from the rear of said automobile; a liquid crystal provided within said frame body for varying transmittivity of the incident light passing therethrough in dependence on an electric field applied thereto; a semi-transparent mirror provided behind said liquid crystal within said frame body for transmitting therethrough and reflecting, for generating a rear view thereon, the incident light passing trough said liquid crystal; a photo sensor provided behind said semi-transparent mirror within said frame body for sensing the intensity of the incident light transmitted through said semitransparent mirror; and a liquid crystal control circuit connected to said photo sensor for controlling the electric field applied to said liquid crystal, the magnitude of the electric field being increased with the increase in the intensity of the incident light sensed by said photo sensor. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A liquid crystal type dazzle-free rear view reflection mirror arrangement in a vehicle comprising:
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a frame body mounted in said vehicle and having an open front end for a passage of an incident light from the rear of said vehicle; a transparent glass provided within said front body; a pair of transparent electrodes provided behind said glass in said frame body for providing an electric field therebetween in response to a voltage applied thereto; a liquid crystal sandwiched between said electrodes for varying transmittivity of the incident light passing therethrough in dependence on the electric field provided by said electrodes; a semi-transparent mirror provided behind said electrodes in said frame body for transmitting therethrough a portion of the incident light passing through said liquid crystal and reflecting, for generating a rear view thereon, a portion of the incident light; a photo sensor provided in said frame body for sensing the intensity of the incident light; and a liquid crystal control circuit connected to said photo sensor for applying the voltage to said electrodes in dependence on the intensity of the incident light sensed by said photo sensor. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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20. A liquid crystal type dazzle-free rear view reflection mirror arrangement for an automobile comprising:
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a frame body mounted within said automobile and having a closed shape except an open front end thereof for the passage of an incident light from the rear of said automobile therethrough; a liquid crystal provided within said frame body for varying transmittivity of the incident light passing therethrough in dependence on an electric field applied thereto; a mirror provided behind said liquid crystal within said frame body for reflecting at least a portion of the incident light passing through said liquid crystal for generation of rear view thereon; a photo sensor supported by said frame body for sensing the intensity of the incident light; a liquid crystal control circuit connected to said photo sensor for controlling the electric field applied to said liquid crystal, the magnitude of the electric field being increased with the increase in the intensity of the incident light sensed by said photo sensor; a temperature sensor provided within said frame body for sensing a temperature of said liquid crystal; a door sensor operatively associated with a door of said automobile for detecting an opening operation of said door; a heater provided within said frame body for heating said liquid crystal when activated; and a heater circuit, connected to said temperature sensor and said door sensor, for activating said heater in response to sensor outputs of said temperature sensor and said door sensor indicative of the sensed temperature being lower than a predetermined temperature and the opening of said door, respectively, wherein said mirror is semi-transparent for transmitting therethrough another portion of the incident light passing through said mirror within said frame body and is sensitive to the incident light transmitted through said mirror.
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Specification