Patent ID: 8282224

Claim:
A variable reflectance mirror system having a front, for use in a rearview mirror assembly having a light source transmitting light of a first polarization through the mirror system towards the front, the minor system comprising: a first substrate having a first electrode disposed on a surface thereof; a second substrate having a second electrode disposed on a surface thereof, the first and second substrates placed in a spaced-apart relationship to define a gap therebetween; an electro-optic medium deployed in the gap, the electro-optic medium characterized by transmittance changing in response to a voltage difference applied between the first and second electrodes; a reflective polarizer including an anisotropic film, the reflective polarizer positioned between the second substrate and the light source such that the light emitted by the light source passes through the reflective polarizer, and where the reflective polarizer reflects light of a second polarization, the second polarization being opposite the first polarization, wherein optical distortions of the mirror system, corresponding to surface distortions and measured from the front, are characterized by metrics, Wa, Wb, and Wc of a wave-scan dual scale, which quantify surface distortions with frequencies corresponding to 0.1 to 0.3 mm, 0.3 to 1.0 mm, 1 to 3 mm, respectively, and at least one of the Wa, Wb, and We values is less than 7.