IHS Markit, a technology analysis company in Southfield, today released a Camera and Display Mirrors Report, which indicates a combination of high-definition cameras and displays in place of traditional mirror designs can help automakers and drivers improve fuel efficiency, battery range, visibility, and safety.
The first production applications of rear-view display mirrors have been successful, with the substantially wider field of vision helping to eliminate blind spots from rear seat occupants or roof pillars. General Motors Co. was the first automaker to market this technology in 2015 with the Cadillac brand before expanding the technology to Chevrolet and Buick models. Other automakers including Nissan, are expected to introduce similar solutions.
A wider field of vision also contributes to improved driver comfort and awareness, which helps drivers and regulators switch between a traditional reflective mirror and camera view. With regulatory approval and early signs of customer acceptance, the report indicates rearview display mirrors are expected to reach nearly 1.8 million units produced annually in 2025, led by markets in Japan and North America.
The report also specifies that cost remains a major barrier to widespread implementation of this new design, but as relatively inexpensive traditional rear-view mirrors are replaced with more complex camera display systems. While cost and complexity will limit the market to some extent, the opportunity for differentiation and improved visibility will attract the interest of number of automakers.
“Suppliers and automakers are investigating several different ways to replicate the camera view with an in-vehicle display. These side-view images could feed through an instrument cluster display of some sort, or even a traditional center stack display,” says Brian Rhodes, automotive technology analyst with IHS Markit. “However, the majority of concepts to this point have focused on new, dedicated side-view displays located either in the door panels or A-pillars because they offer the driver the most familiar line of sight for this safety-critical aspect of driving.”
Augmenting mirrors with cameras is already a common practice for driver assistance perspective.
“Current side camera systems merely enhance the driver’s view today and provide marginal added safety as a result, but there is much more opportunity,” adds Jeremy Carlson, principal automotive analyst with IHS Markit. “Camera sensors allow machine vision software and artificial intelligence to constantly detect, track, and recognize objects over a wide field of view, and that can be important input to autonomous driving solutions.”
In 2025, more than 1.8 million vehicles are projected to be produced with side-view camera sensors to support drivers or contribute to automated driving systems, while more than 23 percent of these systems will completely remove the traditional side-view mirror.
A full version of the report can be found here.
