OREANDA-NEWS. Following the recent announcement of the advanced ProPILOT Assist™ and Rear Door Alert (RDA), Nissan is launching another innovative technology in the 2018 model year – the Intelligent Rear View Mirror (I-RVM). The I-RVM adds a built-in LCD monitor within the traditional rearview mirror to help provide clear rearward visibility unimpeded by traditional obstacles such as cargo, tall passengers or the design of a vehicle.

The 2018 Nissan Armada will be the first Nissan vehicle to offer the new I-RVM technology when it goes on sale at Nissan dealerships nationwide in September. Exclusive in the full-size non-luxury SUV segment2, the technology will be standard on the Armada Platinum grade.

The consumer benefits of the I-RVM are many, including "removing" interior obstacles such as oversize cargo and rear headrests, improving visibility in low-light conditions, reducing glare and providing an expanded field of view.

"One of the basic fundamentals we're taught when first learning to drive is checking the vehicle's mirrors, we learn to adjust in order to get an optimal line of sight. Nissan is taking that necessary safety step to the next level with the new I-RVM," says Bert Brooks, senior manager, product planning, Nissan Canada Inc. "It provides a clear, expanded field of view under a wide range of conditions – giving the driver the best possible view of the rear flanks no matter how crowded the back of the vehicle gets, whether it be with tall passengers or tall cargo."

The Intelligent Rear View Mirror looks just like a traditional rearview mirror, except it has a built-in LCD monitor that can be activated with the flip of a switch located at the bottom of the mirror – even while the Armada is moving. This allows the driver to access either the conventions rearview mirror reflection, for example to help see what is happening inside the rear of the Armada, or the new intelligent view as desired.

How the I-RVM Works
Nissan's new I-RVM utilizes a high-performance, narrow-angle camera and a specially shaped LCD monitor, with a unique aspect ratio of approximately 4:1, versus conventional monitors' 4:3 or 16:9. Matching a standard wide-angle camera lens to this monitor could not be done since the images from the camera, when adjusted to the special monitor size, produced a low-resolution image with insufficient picture quality. To overcome this challenge, a narrow-angle camera was developed so that picture quality would not be sacrificed when formatted for the specially designed monitor.

When the LCD monitor and mirror are used in unison, the transparency of the monitor and the reflection in the mirror can create an image overlap – a dual layered effect – making it difficult to get a clean view. But with the I-RVM, Nissan applied a special technology to the structural design of the LCD monitor and the mirror, enabling it to function without any image overlaps.

The camera projects an image onto the monitor for a clear view, as well as a more comfortable driving experience.