OUTSIDE REARVIEW MIRROR REQUIREMENTS FOR PASSENGER CARS -- CURVATURE, SIZE, AND LOCATION

The convex mirror with 0.9m-1.2m (35in-47in) radius of curvature is preferable for visibility requirements. FOV on the driver's side must be such that the driver sees at least a 2.15-m(7.1ft)-wide extending horizontal plane to the rear of the driver's side of the car at the widest point, said point located 4.60m (15.1ft) behind the driver's eyes. The minimum horizontal mirror sizes were determined based upon this required FOV. As a result, using a plane mirror is not a practical way to meet the required FOV because it must be at least 250mm (9.8in) wide even mounted on a door. Using convex mirrors with a 0.9m-1.2m (35in-47in) radius of curvature is a practical way because they must be at least 120mm-144mm (4.7in-5. 7in) wide even if mounted on a fender. Outside rearview mirrors must be placed inside of the binocular fixation field, which can be performed on the right and left fenders.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was presented at the SAE Meeting, Detroit, Michigan, February 27-March 3, 1978.
• Corporate Authors:

  Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)

  400 Commonwealth Drive
  Warrendale, PA  United States  15096
• Authors:
  • Sugiura, S
  • Kimura, K
• Publication Date: 1978-3

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: 16 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobiles; Convex mirrors; Curvature; Location; Mirrors; Rearview mirrors; Safety equipment; Size; Specifications; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Requirement
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00178841
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Engineering Index
• Report/Paper Numbers: SAE 780339 Preprint
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 27 1978 12:00AM