Patent ID: 11958414
Assignee: MAGNA MIRRORS OF AMERICA, INC.
Field: Audio-visual technology (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC B  H | IPC B  H

Claim 22:
23. A vehicular video mirror system, the vehicular video mirror system comprising:
an interior rearview mirror assembly comprising a mirror head adjustably disposed at a mounting base;
wherein the mounting base is mounted at an in-cabin surface of a windshield of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular video mirror system;
wherein the mirror head accommodates a transflective mirror reflective element, and wherein the transflective mirror reflective element comprises a transflective mirror reflector;
a display device comprising a video display screen accommodated by the mirror head and disposed behind the transflective mirror reflector of the transflective mirror reflective element;
wherein the video display screen, when activated, displays video images viewable through the transflective mirror reflector of the transflective mirror reflective element, and wherein the video display screen, when not activated, is covert behind the transflective mirror reflector of the transflective mirror reflective element;
a vehicle-mounted rear backup camera disposed at a rear portion of the vehicle and having a field of view at least rearward of the vehicle;
a trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera disposed at a trailer that is configured to be hitched to the vehicle and that has a field of view at least rearward of the trailer;
wherein the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera comprises an imaging array having a plurality of pixels, and wherein the plurality of pixels of the imaging array comprises at least (i) a first subset of pixels and (ii) a second subset of pixels that is different from the first subset of pixels;
wherein the first subset of pixels of the plurality of pixels captures image data representative of an upper rearward-view region of the field of view of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera, and wherein the second subset of pixels of the plurality of pixels captures image data representative of a lower rearward-view region of the field of view of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera;
wherein, when the video display screen is activated, the video display screen displays video images that are viewable through the transflective mirror reflector of the transflective mirror reflective element by a driver of the vehicle viewing the transflective mirror reflective element;
wherein the video display screen, with no trailer hitched to the vehicle, and responsive to the vehicle being set for rearward propulsion, is activated to display video images derived from image data captured by the vehicle-mounted rear backup camera;
wherein the video display screen, with the trailer equipped with the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera hitched to the vehicle, and responsive to the vehicle being set for forward propulsion, is activated to display rearward-view video images derived from image data captured by the first subset of pixels of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera and does not display video images derived from image data captured by the second subset of pixels of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera;
wherein the video display screen, with the trailer equipped with the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera hitched to the vehicle, and responsive to the vehicle being set for rearward propulsion, is activated to display rearward-view video images derived from image data captured by the second subset of pixels of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera and does not display video images derived from image data captured by the first subset of pixels of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera; and
wherein, responsive to actuation of a user input by the driver of the vehicle, the video display screen is activated to simultaneously display rearward-view video images derived from image data captured by at least (i) the first subset of pixels of the plurality of pixels of the imaging array of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera and (ii) the second subset of pixels of the plurality of pixels of the imaging array of the trailer-mounted rearward viewing camera.