New display technology initiates rethinking of the rearview mirror

It has long been impossible to improve the rear-view experience of a car driver. But now a new display technology allows the integration of display functionality with the mirror thereby creating new rear-view display systems for the automotive world.

Eindhoven, the Netherlands, October 30, 2012 – The rear-view mirror in the car has been rapidly gaining attention lately. The introduction of the Audi R8 e-tron with a display instead of an interior mirror and concept cars with displays instead of any internal and external mirrors make people wonder whether the rear-view mirror will survive in next generations of cars designs.

The reality is that the mirror has many advantages for a driver: the rear-view image is perfect and focused at the original object distance, which eliminates the need to re-accommodate the eye between the road and the mirror surface. Also, the mirror image creates a natural perception of distance giving the driver an immediate understanding of the driving situation.

Hans Feil, CEO of Miortech, a Dutch company developing rear-view display systems for the automotive market states: “The mirror is such a perfect optical system that up to now technology has not been able to improve it. The only development for the automotive world was approximately 25 years ago when auto-dimming glass to eliminate glare during night driving became available. However, that technology has limited benefits. Present auto-dimming rear-view mirrors do not only eliminate the glare but dim completely thereby reducing a complete image to an image in which only the lights of the car behind can be seen.”

OEMs (car makers) are searching for innovation in the rear-view system. Not only is the present dimming glass mirror 25 years old, research on driver behaviour has shown that car drivers look approximately every 15 seconds into a mirror. This makes the rear-view system an excellent human machine interface tool for bringing alerts and additional information to the driver.

Feil continues: “Miortech developed an electro-wetting display technology that allows us to integrate and combine the functionality of the rear-view mirror with the functionalities of a display. We now make rear-view display systems that dim locally, specifically where headlights appear. We integrate display functionality on top of mirror glass. It is really the best of both worlds. People are very excited about the new possibilities and we have been asked by several OEMs and Tier 1 automotive suppliers for prototypes of our rear-view display systems.”

The Eindhoven, Netherlands based company Miortech has developed a proprietary electro-wetting display technology based upon research originally performed at Philips Research in the Netherlands. The technology has been tailored specifically with the goal of creating the possibility of locally dimming rear-view display systems. The additional advantage is that the electro-wetting display technology dims within a few milliseconds. That is much faster than the three seconds required by the conventional dimming mirrors currently used in many cars. In addition, Miortech has developed the Alertmirror® , a mirror which combines the local dimming functionality with an added dashboard functionality. Examples of use include alerts regarding driving, technical status of the car and radio station information.

In conclusion, rear-view mirrors have a unique function that is presently indispensible for a car driver. Displays are not expected to replace the mirrors in the car soon. However, new display technology will be integrated with the mirror, thereby improving the rear-view perception and create opportunities for additional functionality. Recently, Miortech produced the first of such rear-view display systems. Interest from the automotive world is high and Miortech is responding to this interest by creating prototypes for test driving by OEM and Tier 1 mirror manufacturers.

Miortech B.V. is a Dutch company developing, marketing and producing rear-view display systems for the automotive world using its proprietary electro-wetting display technology. The company is a private company with financial backing from private and public investors.

More information can be obtained at www.miortech.com or by sending an email to doeke.oostra@miortech.com (tel. +31 40 8514630)


Caption: Miortechs rearview mirror that locally dims the headlights while keeping the image bright