How to Turbo - Part 1
Quote Isehara, Japan - Go to an auto show and there will probably be a futuristic concept car that has abandoned its sideview mirrors or.
Designers can be substituted discreet camera lenses budding away from the metal sheet.
cars or vehicles - mirrorless that drop glass mirrors from the old school for the video screens - have been proposed for years by the designers and engineers who want appears smoother and improved efficiency safety and fuel.
Last month, the proposals were closer to reality in Japan, which has become one of the first markets allowing vehicles to use cameras instead of mirrors The promise of mirrorless cars triggered a rush of suppliers to technology, including newcomers like Ichikoh Industries of Japan and Germany's Robert Bosch GmbH.
The status of Japan's first mover could give Japanese companies a good start typing on the trend.
Ichikoh, known primarily as a supplier of lighting and mirrors, sees great opportunities in cars and manufacturing its first mirrorless product.
Our job is to improve the visibility of the player, with lighting and mirrors, but now with cameras, Ali Ordoobadi Ichikoh CEO said in an interview at the world headquarters of the company here south of Tokyo.
There is a switch technology, a kind of rupture, he said it is a really new segment with a higher content, and that means higher income opportunities this is the trend, and we must be in front of the others.
It concerns not only the suppliers who make more monitors depending on the camera-money have advantages over conventional mirrors that help automakers address two major challenges in improving security and boosts fuel economy.
For starters, the cameras capture a wider angle of vision and can see normally invisible blind spots with mirrors They can also improve visibility by digitally compensating for glare, darkness or even rainy weather.
camera-based systems generally weigh less mirrors and reduce drag, helping lift fuel economy They also allow potentially sexier silhouettes streamlined body.
The first product of Ichikoh is a rearview mirror that has a dual function It acts like an ordinary mirror and with the flick of a switch, turning it into a digital screen displaying a live video stream of the rear view.
Nicknamed the rear Smart Monitor, he began production on June 28 for a customer who uses a vehicle that goes on sale in Japan in August
Ichikoh has identified the client just as with Japanese automaker intends to use the monitor in a mid-range, low-volume plate.
Japanese regulators have changed the rules to allow mirrorless cars as of June 17
I can say that we are the first in the OEM market, said Ordoobadi.
The way the car was allowed mirrorless late last year at the United Nations World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations approved the use of cameras that meet certain specifications up mirrors.
Tetsuya Saito, section chief of the Engineering policy Road Transport Bureau of Japan, said Japan has amended its rules in the light of advanced video Quali-ty UN Regulations have standards that determine Clear- ly high per-formance specifications, Saito far camera monitors t familiar haven to replace the mirrors because they didn t have sufficient visibility.
Japan and the European Union were among the regions should check local regulations this year to allow the new tech- nology.
The United States saw the adoption of the standard in 2018, and China should join the club in the coming years, said Ichikoh.
The volume may be low, but now Ichikoh sees strong growth, at least in Japan.
It predicts that by 2023, about 29 percent of the Japanese market - about 2 3 million vehicles - will have video monitors as interior mirrors the same time, it provides about 12 percent of the market - about 900,000 vehicles - - will be dropped outside mirrors for the cameras.
With its French partner Valeo SA, Ichikoh plans to introduce its surveillance systems outside of Japan, including the U S and Europe.
We will not be looking only on the Japanese market, said Ordoobadi.
Ichikoh is not the only new technology preparing In June, rival Japanese mirror manufacturer Murakami Corp. unveiled plans to develop video monitors up interior mirrors Nikkan Kogyo newspaper of Japan said Murakami aims to begin production around 2018 .
So far, the camera monitors t familiar haven to replace the mirrors because they didn t have enough visibility Tetsuya Saito Japan Road Transport Bureau of the new technology also opens the door for others.
Germany Bosch doesn not even have mirrors, but he feels the opportunity to use its expertise in electronics to enter a new segment He envisions a mirrorless monitors deployed over the next three years, said the door Floor-Barbara Zelenay Bosch Bosch has developed a commercial truck system with screens mounted on interior of the front of the cabin.
Technology is not the issue, said Zelenay is the law, we charge no t make mirrors, but we could do the replacement mirrors.
Continental AG is another vendor which showed a prototype system, while Tesla Motors petitioned U S regulators to allow technology.
U Gentex Corp provider also offers a monitor that goes from the traditional mirror video with the touch of a button, he debuted in the Cadillac CT6.
Ichikoh initial system uses a camera mounted at the rear of the car that feeds live video to a screen where the mirror is traditional is also a hybrid system, offering a traditional mirror backup.
Although the rules allow Japan mirrorless cars, Ordoobadi said automakers want a gradual evolution, in part so that customers can adjust.
The cost of high-tech mirrors is a problem, but a test with Ichikoh monitor highlighted other differences that might require adjustment by consumers.
In use on a Toyota van, 1 3 megapixel camera supplied by Panasonic Corp. has supplied a wide view 160 degrees to the rear of the van Visibility was impressive and clear, but some things were against-intuitive.
Drivers with conventional mirrors are used to move the head from one side to the other to get a better view of the rear of the vehicle, but with a rear camera, the image on the screen remains unchanged regardless matter how the driver changes the angle of view.
The camera van was also eliminated blind spots neatly behind the rear pillars, but in a traditional mirror, these pillars can also be the reference points for objects and their spatial relationships to the vehicle that is lost with a field of view.
Finally, the color is significantly less dynamic than the reflection of a mirror.
In the future, Ichikoh plans to introduce monitors for camera to replace Curb Side Mirrors The company sees small screens in the right and left corners of the dashboard, on where air conditioning vents are usually placed some proposals put the monitors on the pillars other ideas include the use of a video tape along the upper edge of the windshield that capture front and side views stitched together into a panorama.
Ichikoh gets about 20 percent of its overall turnover headlights mirrors, taillights and interior lighting up the bulk of the rest.
He sees the camera as an opportunity for remarketing as a supplier of vision systems around vehicles that fuse lighting, mirrors and monitors.
For Ichikoh, a company that has the expertise to mirrors, to gradually move to this technology is an advantage, but it is also necessary, Ordoobadi said the trend is that the mirrors are in decline and the cameras will increase we must adapt to this.
Japan moves quickly in cars Club Lexus Forums mirrorless, Japan, cars, mirrorless club.