Patent ID: 6859147

Claim:
A system to provide the driver of a motor vehicle having an inside rearview mirror with a warning of the presence and location of an emergency vehicle of the type generating an alert-status signal, the system comprising a) a sensor located in the motor vehicle, the sensor being responsive to sense the presence, location and strength of the alert-status signal from the emergency vehicle and to provide an output signal indicative thereof, b) a control block receiving the signal from the sensor and responsive thereto to supply an output signal indicative of the presence, location and strength of the alert-status signal, and c) visual indicia associated with the face of the rearview mirror and receiving the output signal from the control block, the visual indicia being responsive to said output signal to provide the driver with visual directional notification of the presence and location of the emergency vehicle,—the visual indicia including four indicia markers located at approximately 90 degrees from one another on horizontal and vertical axes visible on the face of the mirror,—the four indicia markers being normally one of invisible and visually muted with respect to the face of the mirror and being individually illuminatable responsive to the output signal from the control block,—the four indicia markers establishing top, bottom, left and right indicia responsive to output signals associated with the presence of an emergency vehicle located ahead, behind, to the left and to the right of the motor vehicle, respectively.