why don't we have cameras replacing side view mirrors yet?

[BlahBlahYouToo]

side view mirrors the size of dumbo ears really kill gas mileage.
why haven't they replaced them with sleek thin blades with a high resolution camera and an LCD on the inside?

perhaps not on every car, but at least the ones that are aiming for high FE like Volt, prius, etc.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Side view mirrors add very little to frontal area and hardly make a blip on the wind resistance/gas mileage figures...

As for why they haven't been replaced with cameras and LCDs, both space and cost are two important players here. Firstly where would the LCD screens be put in the car? In most cars there's simply not space on the dash for two LCD monitors (and no, they couldn't be multipurpose monitors for obvious safety reasons), not to mention the additional costs compared to relatively inexpensive mirrors.

Basically, there's almost no benefit and a lot of cost associated with the idea, which is why it hasn't been done except on concepts or one-off custom machines.

ZV

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Side view mirrors add very little to frontal area and hardly make a blip on the wind resistance/gas mileage figures...

As for why they haven't been replaced with cameras and LCDs, both space and cost are two important players here. Firstly where would the LCD screens be put in the car? In most cars there's simply not space on the dash for two LCD monitors (and no, they couldn't be multipurpose monitors for obvious safety reasons), not to mention the additional costs compared to relatively inexpensive mirrors.

Basically, there's almost no benefit and a lot of cost associated with the idea, which is why it hasn't been done except on concepts or one-off custom machines.

ZV

negative ghost rider. wind tunnel studies have shown that side view mirrors are a sizable source of drag.

also, cameras and LCD's are dirt cheap these days.
position them on the insides of the car, directly opposite the camera.

 

[Gibson486]

the lcds and cameras may be dirt cheap (definitely not cheaper than a side view mirror), but making it lag free and implementing it is not cheap.

 

[SparkyJJO]

Uh how about no. Even more stuff to go wrong and cost more for negligible benefit. Oops sorry your backlight went out, you can't see your left side anymore. Or how about sun glare on the screen? Even better. Or the screen always lit up by the backlight at night, that would be annoying.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Uh how about no. Even more stuff to go wrong and cost more for negligible benefit. Oops sorry your backlight went out, you can't see your left side anymore. Or how about sun glare on the screen? Even better. Or the screen always lit up by the backlight at night, that would be annoying.

right, because there's no way to implement a fail safe.
flip up/out mirror?

 

[DivideBYZero]

right, because there's no way to implement a fail safe.
flip up/out mirror?

So now you have cams & mirrors? Wow, you're just trading frontal area for weight.

Mirrors work.

 

[AstroManLuca]

I wouldn't mind it. However a few problems I can think of:

- Obviously the cost is a lot higher. But new features always go to luxury cars first so it wouldn't be out of the question.
- Many people may prefer having real mirrors as a backup since there's really nothing that can go wrong with them. They can physically break but they are immune to software problems or the wiring fritzing out. A lot of screens are unreadable in direct sunlight, which isn't a problem for mirrors (unless the sun is in the exact right spot). On the other hand, screens inside the car can't get iced over and are less likely to fog up.
- Having screens removes the direct connection between where the mirror is and what you're looking at. A screen can show anything, but a mirror can only show what it's pointed at.

I actually don't think it's a bad idea. Backup cameras are already common in all sorts of cars, not just luxury cars either. But it would have to be lag-free and the screens would have to be highly visible even in sunlight.

 

[BassBomb]

would kinda suck not being able to tilt your head to get a better angle with the mirror, because the camera would likely be fixed

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

So now you have cams & mirrors? Wow, you're just trading frontal area for weight.

Mirrors work.

i bet a cam/LCD/wiring/flip out mirror weighs less than a whole sideview mirror/housing/wiring.

LCD/camera (concept)

conventional side view mirror

 

[Imp]

I hear European cars have a partially-curved/convex sidemirror to eliminate blindspots. I wouldn't mind that over a camera.

 

[StageLeft]

It will happen. I saw recently some birds eye shot of a car and it uses four cameras to stitch together a 360 so that the driver has an idea of what's going on in his car. So yes there may be issues, but it will probably happen if it can provide some safety benefit or other.

 

[punjabiplaya]

people already complain that cars cost too much

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

people already complain that cars cost too much

high luxury end cars/hybrids.
it will trickle into mainstream cars very quickly.

proximity keys were only in luxury cars 5 years ago. now, every nissan and some hyundais have it.

 

[StageLeft]

I really do ♥ push-button start. I didn't think I would, but I adore it.

 

[SearchMaster]

I really do ♥ push-button start. I didn't think I would, but I adore it.

That's the one modern convenience I envy. My dad and neighbor both have Altimas with it, and of course the Prius (holla!) does as well.

 

[LTC8K6]

Infiniti QX56 Around View monitor with warning system.

 

[AMCRambler]

I think they'd work but they're still cost prohibitive. I'd like to see the wind tunnel studies that say a side mirror makes a significant contribution to drag and fuel consumption. What's the glass and motor to move a mirror cost vs a camera and lcd? Probably almost a 2 grand difference. It would also probably need to be an led back light too so that lamp life is higher than a normal fluorescent back light.

 

[punjabiplaya]

I think they'd work but they're still cost prohibitive. I'd like to see the wind tunnel studies that say a side mirror makes a significant contribution to drag and fuel consumption. What's the glass and motor to move a mirror cost vs a camera and lcd? Probably almost a 2 grand difference. It would also probably need to be an led back light too so that lamp life is higher than a normal fluorescent back light.

The weight of a camera system vs the drag of a conventional mirror. That's what I want to see. If there's no benefit, why add complexity?

 

[Pariah]

The weight of a camera system vs the drag of a conventional mirror. That's what I want to see. If there's no benefit, why add complexity?

I would guess both are near as makes no difference neglibible hinderances to vehicle efficiency.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

The weight of a camera system vs the drag of a conventional mirror. That's what I want to see. If there's no benefit, why add complexity?

apples to apples is weight + drag of camera vs. weight + drag of mirror.

cameras are tiny and cheap. they're in every phone. in a PHONE FFS. that's how small and cheap they are. and they're good quality sensors too.

mirrors are heavy and huge. power mirrors have a motor thingy inside too.

 

[kornphlake]

with a conventional mirror the image is reflected at different angles to each retina, the picture is in true 3D and allows for depth perception. A camera and LCD screen would not give any true depth perception. That alone is enough reason to stick with mirrors for now.

 

[Throckmorton]

An LCD and camera weigh almost nothing. Even if the whole setup weighed 2lb, that's insignificant. Did people suddenly lose all sense of proportion to be complaining about weight of LCD SCREENS?

Oh I better stop wearing my watch and carrying my cell phone because the screens and cameras weigh so much!! Wahhh!!

But mirrors and servers to adjust them weigh nothing!

 

[Pariah]

mirrors are heavy and huge. power mirrors have a motor thingy inside too.

On a 3000+lbs car, less than 10 lbs does not even remotely begin to be described as huge and heavy. Unless you daily drive an F350, your car does not have "Dumbo" side mirrors.

 

[Throckmorton]

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthre...l-economy-quantified-95.html?highlight=mirror

According the the following article, the rear view mirrors contribute 3% to 6% of the total vehicle drag.

http://www.tfd.chalmers.se/~lelo/rvad/reports/rva2002_gr11_contribution-to-drag.pdf

The following article also has a lot of basic information about drag reduction in cars.

http://www.tfd.chalmers.se/~lelo/rvad/reports/rva2002_gr10_drag-reducing.pdf