Back mirror and method for manufacturing the same

• US 5,796,532 A
• Filed: 11/21/1996
• Issued: 08/18/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Murakami Kaimedio Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Murakami Kaimedio Company Limited
• Inventors: Kanazawa, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Dzierzynski, Paul M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): SIKDER, MOHAMMAD YUNUS
• Application Number:
  US08/752,581
• Time in Patent Office: 635 Days
• Field of Search: 359/858, 359/859, 359/853, 359/856, 359/857, 359/864, 359/866, 359/867, 359/868, 359/599, 359/883, 359/838
• US Class Current: 359/858
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/082 using a single wide field mirror or an association of rigidly connected mirrors

Abstract

A back mirror has plural mirror surface areas of different curvatures disposed side by side or plural mirror surface areas disposed side by side to form discontinuous planes. The back mirror includes a dividing line having a light diffusion effect formed along a border portion of the plural mirror surface areas. The dividing line may be formed by projections and depressions having a light diffusion effect which are formed on at least one of a transparent substrate, reflecting film and a transparent thin film formed on the reflecting film.

Claims

1. A back mirror having plural mirror surface areas of different curvatures disposed side by side to form discontinuous planes, said back mirror having a dividing line formed along a border portion between the plural mirror surface areas, wherein said back mirror has a transparent glass substrate having a front surface and a back surface, and a reflecting film on said back surface of the transparent glass substrate, said dividing line comprising fine projections and depressions formed on the back surface of the transparent glass substrate, whereby the fine projections and depressions constituting the dividing line diffuse and reflect incident light entering from the front surface of the transparent glass substrate thereby to cause the diffused and reflected light to pass through the front surface of the transparent glass substrate to an eyepoint of a driver and cause the driver to recognize the dividing line.

2. A back mirror as defined in claim 1 wherein said reflecting film is formed on the entire back surface of the transparent glass substrate and said dividing line is covered with the reflecting film.

3. A back mirror as defined in claim 1 wherein the reflecting film is cut off along the dividing line and the reflecting film is continuously coated with a back coating on the back surface of the reflecting film in a portion including the dividing line and an area in the vicinity of the dividing line.

4. A back mirror as defined in claim 1 wherein the width of the dividing line is within a range between 0.5 mm and 2 mm.

5. A method for manufacturing a back mirror having plural mirror surface areas of different curvatures disposed side by side to form discontinuous planes, said back mirror having a dividing line formed along a border portion between the plural mirror surface areas, wherein said back mirror has a transparent glass substrate having a front surface and a back surface, and a reflecting film on said back surface of the transparent glass substrate, said dividing line comprising fine projections and depressions formed on the back surface of the transparent glass substrate, whereby the fine projections and depressions constituting the dividing line diffuse and reflect incident light entering from the front surface of the transparent glass substrate thereby to cause the diffused and reflected light to pass through the front surface of the transparent glass substrate to an eyepoint of a driver and cause the driver to recognize the dividing line, said method comprising a step of forming the projections and depressions by blasting.