Geometrically shaped ellipsoid vehicular mirror

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9511714-B2
Application number	US-61790206-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 29, 2006
Priority date	Dec 29, 2006
Publication date	Dec 6, 2016
Grant date	Dec 6, 2016

Abstract

Cross-view mirrors for buses and other vehicles which provide modified image sizes. The mirror assemblies have lens members created from the shape of a portion of an elliptical or circular toroid volumetric shape with an elliptical or circular cross-sectional shape. A first embodiment has an elliptical toroid volumetric shape with an elliptical cross-sectional shape. A second embodiment has an elliptical toroid volumetric shape with a circular cross-sectional shape. A third embodiment has a circular toroid volumetric shape with an elliptical cross-sectional shape,

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A mirror assembly comprising:
a base member;
a dome lens member attached to said base member, said dome lens member having a continuously varying radius of curvature, said dome lens member comprising:
a center surface portion having a center surface radius of curvature; and
a peripheral surface portion having a peripheral surface radius of curvature, said peripheral surface radius of curvature greater than said center surface radius of curvature;
wherein said center surface portion forms a first proportion image view and said peripheral surface portion forms a second proportion image view, said first proportion image view generating smaller image proportions than said second proportion image view, wherein said dome lens member comprises a major axis tip portion of an ellipsoid.

2. A mirror assembly as described in claim 1 wherein a dome depth is less than one third of a dome width.

3. A vehicle mirror as described in claim 1 wherein said major axis tip portion comprises a dome depth less than one tenth of a major axis length of said ellipsoid.

4. A vehicle mirror as described in claim 1 wherein said ellipsoid includes a minor axis length less than half of a major axis length.

5. A vehicle having at least one mirror assembly thereon, said mirror assembly comprising:
a base member;
a dome lens member attached to said base member, said dome lens member having a continuously varying radius of curvature, said dome lens member comprising:
a center surface portion having a center surface radius of curvature; and
a peripheral surface portion having a peripheral surface radius of curvature, said peripheral surface radius of curvature greater than said center surface radius of curvature;
wherein said center surface portion forms a first proportion image view and said peripheral surface portion forms a second proportion image view, said first proportion image view generating smaller image proportions than said second proportion image view, wherein said dome lens member comprises a major axis tip portion of an ellipsoid.

6. The vehicle as set forth in claim 5 further comprising a mounting bracket member for attaching said mirror assembly to said vehicle.

7. The vehicle as set forth in claim 5 wherein said vehicle is a bus.

8. The vehicle as set forth in claim 5 wherein two mirror assemblies are positioned on said vehicle.

9. The vehicle as set forth in claim 8 wherein said vehicle is a bus and said mirror assemblies are positioned on the fender of said bus.

10. The vehicle as set forth in claim 9 further comprising mounting bracket members attaching said mirror assemblies to said bus.

Assignees

• Schmidt William P
• Swain Daniel M
• Rosco Inc

Inventors

• Schmidt William P
• Swain Daniel M

Classifications

• B60R1/06

  mounted on vehicle exterior {(B60R1/025, B60R1/08 take precedence)} · CPC title

• B60R1/082 Primary

  using a single wide field mirror or an association of rigidly connected mirrors · CPC title

• G02B5/10

  with curved faces · CPC title