JPH09301072A - Automobile rear view mirror - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automobile rear view mirror permitting the rear visibility at its retracted state and eliminating the visually inevitable dead space. SOLUTION: An automobile rear view mirror has an auxiliary mirror 33 located outside a mirror body with respect to the automobile body at its spread state in substantial perpendicular to the mirror body and parallel with the surface of the door, which at its retracted state enables the driver to have the rear visibility.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a structure of an automobile door mirror having an auxiliary mirror which enables rearward confirmation even when the vehicle is stored.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A door mirror for a vehicle is a kind of a mirror for confirming the rear sides of both sides, which is installed outside the left and right doors of a vehicle, while a mirror called a fender mirror is installed on the hood. Compared to the fender mirror, its mounting position is closer to the driver, so it has a wider field of view, and it has the advantages of being able to wipe the mirror surface in the rain without having to go out of the car, making it a beautifully designed car, etc. ing. On the other hand, since the door mirror is a member protruding from the door, it has a drawback that the vehicle width is substantially larger than that of the fender mirror.

As a result, the door mirror may sometimes come into contact with something when passing through a narrow road or in a parking lot. Therefore, most door mirrors can be folded manually or electrically. That is, a pedestal is fixedly mounted on the door portion, and the mirror main body having a mirror surface body is rotatably attached to this pedestal, thereby substantially reducing the vehicle width. The above disadvantages are solved by various methods such as storing manually when necessary, storing electrically by turning on a switch, storing automatically when the engine is turned off, and the like.

[0004]

However, the retractable door mirror has the following problems. That is, there is a problem in that the rear side cannot be confirmed by the mirror while the image is stored. The fact that the closed mirror opens means that
Naturally, it is dangerous for a bicycle or a motorcycle passing by. And of course it is the person opening the mirror who is responsible for ensuring that there is no such danger.

The fact that the rearward confirmation cannot be performed by the mirror means that the rearward confirmation means when the mirror is stored is only directly visible. However, the direct visual inspection has an unavoidable adverse effect of a blind spot due to the presence of pillars. However, in the case of automobiles, etc., where a film that reduces the amount of transmitted light is attached to the glass surface of the rear door or the rear window, the field of view through the glass itself is insufficient.

[0006]

Therefore, the present inventor finally achieved the present invention as a result of earnest research experiments in view of the above points, and is characterized in that the pedestal fixed to the door of the vehicle body is And a movable part rotatably attached to the pedestal part, the retractable door mirror having a mirror surface at a portion located outside the mirror surface body with respect to the vehicle body when deployed. It is at a point where an auxiliary mirror is attached at a position approximately vertical and approximately parallel to the door surface.

The term "door" as used herein refers to an opening / closing door installed on the left and right sides of the vehicle. In the case of a 2-door type vehicle, it is synonymous with those doors, but it is a 4-door type. In the case of a car, it means the front door. The door mirror of the present invention is fixed to this door, but in reality, the fixing position and the fixing method are the same as those of the conventional door mirror.

The "retractable door mirror" is a mirror body rotatably attached to a pedestal portion fixed to a door of an automobile body. The mirror body is rotated to adjust the width and depth of the mirror surface portion. The width of the vehicle is reduced by the difference. In other words, turning to reduce the protruding length is called “retracting”, and does not indicate the movement of retracting the protruding length. The word "stored" in the form of a door mirror is synonymous with this and is frequently used. The rotating means may be a method using a motor or a manual method, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

The mirror surface portion of the door mirror is generally at an angle of 60 to 70 ° with respect to the vehicle body, although it varies depending on the shape of the vehicle body, the mounting position of the mirror, the seat height and the sitting posture of the driver. When it is stored, it is almost parallel to the vehicle body. The "movable part" having this mirror surface body has various shapes such as a hemispherical shape and a plate shape.

The existence of the "auxiliary mirror" is a feature of the present invention. This is a mirror that functions as a backward confirmation only when the door mirror is closed.When the door mirror is open, the mirror surface is almost parallel to the vehicle body surface. It is a mirror that exists and does not interfere with backward confirmation. In order to distinguish the normal door mirror from the auxiliary mirror in the present invention, they are hereinafter referred to as “regular mirror” and “auxiliary mirror”.

The mounting position of the auxiliary mirror is outside the movable part (a position away from the rotation axis, and a part outside the regular mirror with respect to the vehicle body when opened). The mirror surface of the auxiliary mirror is positioned approximately perpendicular to the mirror surface and parallel to the door surface of the vehicle body when the regular mirror is deployed, in order to function as a rear confirmation only when the regular mirror is closed. Shall be installed in. The mirror surface of the auxiliary mirror, like the mirror surface of a regular mirror, usually changes somewhat depending on the shape of the door mirror, the shape of the vehicle body, the seat height of the driver, the sitting posture, etc. Therefore, the angle of this auxiliary mirror can also be adjusted. Good to do so. Note that "vertical" and "parallel" in the expression "a position approximately vertical to the mirror body and approximately parallel to the door surface" with respect to the mounting position of the auxiliary mirror is a concept including a margin for the angle adjustment. Of course, it is not exactly vertical or parallel, nor is there a clear width of extension. When the door mirror is closed, it has a property like a regular door mirror, and when it is open, it means that the mirror surface is shown from the other side to the outside of the regular door mirror.

The auxiliary mirror may be formed integrally with a regular mirror. In this case, the respective mirror surfaces of the regular mirror and the auxiliary mirror are arranged in a substantially L shape.
In the case of an automobile equipped with a mechanism for adjusting the mirror surface angle of a regular mirror by remote control from the inside of the automobile, if both mirrors are integrally formed, only one adjustment mechanism can be used for both adjustments. it can. The mirror mirror surface may be a flat surface or a convex curved surface.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in more detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example of an automobile door mirror 1 according to the present invention (hereinafter referred to as the present invention mirror 1). As is apparent from the drawing, the present invention mirror 1 is a front door of an automobile body B. The pedestal portion 2 is attached to the front door D and is fixed to the front door D. The pedestal portion 2 is composed of a pedestal portion 2 and a movable portion 3 rotatably attached to a pivot shaft near the front end of the pedestal portion 2. .

The movable part 3 is composed of a shell body 31 having a shape taking the aerodynamic problem into consideration, a regular mirror 32, and an auxiliary mirror 33. The regular mirror 32 can change its angle by remote control from inside the automobile, and a remote control mechanism (not shown) for that purpose is provided between the shell 31 and the regular mirror 32.

The auxiliary mirror 33 is provided outside the movable portion 3 and is a mirror surface having a slightly convex curved surface. This is attached to the shell body 31, and the mirror surface angle can be adjusted by moving it by hand. Shell 31
Does not hinder the rear view of the auxiliary mirror 33 when the movable part 3 is stored, and further, when the movable part 3 is deployed,
The presence of 3 does not generate annoying wind noise.

FIG. 2 shows a regular mirror 32 and an auxiliary mirror 33.
An example in which and are integrated is shown. Both mirrors are connected by a connecting member 4, and the combined mirror is moved by an interval operation from inside the vehicle.

FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b) are schematic plan views showing the states of the movable part 3 when it is retracted [FIG. 3 (a)] and when it is unfolded [FIG. 3 (b)]. It has been clarified that the driver can sometimes check the rear side through the mirror, and that the mirror surface of the auxiliary mirror 33 cannot be seen in the driver's visual field at the time of deployment. It is clear that the rear view when stored can be made safe with less blind spots as compared to the case where only the direct visual observation obtained by turning around by the driver is relied upon.

[0019]

As described above in detail, the vehicle door mirror according to the present invention is composed of a pedestal portion fixed to the door of the vehicle body and a movable portion rotatably attached to the pedestal portion. A retractable door mirror that has an auxiliary mirror attached to a portion that is located outside the mirror surface body with respect to the vehicle body when unfolded, approximately perpendicular to the mirror surface body and substantially parallel to the door surface. The present invention is characterized by the fact that it is an extremely advanced invention having the following effects.

Since the auxiliary mirror that can confirm the rear side even when stored is attached, it is safe because the blind spot that always exists in the rear confirmation only by direct visual inspection when the door mirror is stored is almost completely eliminated by the combined use with the auxiliary mirror. Since the mirror surface of the auxiliary mirror does not exist within the field of view when the door mirror is deployed, there is no object that obstructs it when viewing the regular mirror, so it is safe. If the vehicle is left with the door mirrors stored, it is safe because the auxiliary mirrors urgently substitute the regular mirrors.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of an automobile door mirror according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example in which a regular mirror and an auxiliary mirror are combined and integrated.

3 (a) and 3 (b) are both schematic plan views showing an example of an automobile door mirror according to the present invention, where FIG. 3 (a) is at the time of storage and FIG. 3 (b) is at the time of deployment. .

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Car Door Mirror 2 According to the Present Invention 2 Pedestal Part 3 Movable Part 31 Shell 32 Regular Mirror 33 Auxiliary Mirror 4 Connection Member B Car Body D Front Door

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A retractable door mirror composed of a pedestal portion fixed to a door of an automobile body and a movable portion rotatably attached to the pedestal portion, the foldable door mirror relative to the vehicle body when unfolded. A door mirror for an automobile, characterized in that an auxiliary mirror is attached to a portion located outside the mirror body at a position substantially perpendicular to the mirror body and substantially parallel to the door surface.