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Interesting that US law forbids curved rear view mirrors in cars. Too bad, those seem very improvable.

by lacker 18y ago

steamboiler 18y ago
Does anyone know why? Just a wild guess, could it be possible that drivers might get distracted with too much visual information?
- cool-RR 18y ago
  It's probably because they distort the size/distance of objects, and drivers not accustomed to that might make an accident because of it.
- alecst 18y ago
  The answer to this question can be found here: http://forums.projektgerman.com/showthread.php?p=83238 http://forums.projektgerman.com/showthread.php?p=83238
  - russell 18y ago
    One of the comments in the article links to another article on how to adjust your mirrors so that you dont have blind spots. http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/BlindSpot.htm http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/BlindSpot.htm I hate the convex mirrors because I cant judge distances backing up in tight spaces.
- newt0311 18y ago
  Its the government. Making idiotic useless (or on a more moderate note: shortsighted) regulation is its purpose in life.
axod 18y ago
The "Objects in the mirror may appear closer than they are" warning is a US thing also isn't it?
- sfphotoarts 18y ago
  yes, welcome to the Nanny State... Much along the same idea, coming out of the Ferry Building in San Francisco a few days back when it was pouring with rain, someone had helpfully put out cones to warn me that I was entering the outside and that it was wet. The black sky, and cats and dogs falling from it might have also tipped me off, but thankfully I had the cones as confirmation :)
- petercooper 18y ago
  I just Googled around for objects in the mirror may appear closer than they are and objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear. Two totally different things. Thousands of results. Which one is actually true? Surely if objects are further away than they appear, it's pointless to note that since it's safe. So it has to be "Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear" right?
  - likpok 18y ago
    "objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear" If you think about it, it is a concave mirror giving wider field of vision. Concave mirrors give virtual smaller images.
    - twopoint718 18y ago
      Convex mirrors will produce a smaller virtual image (behind the plane of the mirror) taken from a wider field of view. Concave mirrors will produce an inverted real image (for objects farther away than the focal length) or a larger virtual image (for objects inside the focal length).
- cstejerean 18y ago
  It's actually the opposite, objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear. In fact they are closer, this is for the passenger side mirrors. Cars always look farther away in it than in the driver side mirror or in the middle rear-view mirror
tlb 18y ago
I'm no proponent of the nanny state, but there is something to be said for standards. It's important that any driver be able to drive any car. Otherwise, a driver used to 1:1 mirrors who rented or borrowed a car with convex mirrors would underestimate the speed and distance of cars passing him.
deleted 18y ago
[deleted]

Interesting that US law forbids curved rear view mirrors in cars. Too bad, those seem very improvable.

by lacker 18y ago

Interesting that US law forbids curved rear view mirrors in cars. Too bad, those seem very improvable.

Does anyone know why? Just a wild guess, could it be possible that drivers might get distracted with too much visual information?

cool-RR 18y ago
It's probably because they distort the size/distance of objects, and drivers not accustomed to that might make an accident because of it.
alecst 18y ago
The answer to this question can be found here: http://forums.projektgerman.com/showthread.php?p=83238 http://forums.projektgerman.com/showthread.php?p=83238
- russell 18y ago
  One of the comments in the article links to another article on how to adjust your mirrors so that you dont have blind spots. http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/BlindSpot.htm http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~gdguo/driving/BlindSpot.htm I hate the convex mirrors because I cant judge distances backing up in tight spaces.
newt0311 18y ago
Its the government. Making idiotic useless (or on a more moderate note: shortsighted) regulation is its purpose in life.

axod 18y ago

The "Objects in the mirror may appear closer than they are" warning is a US thing also isn't it?

sfphotoarts 18y ago
yes, welcome to the Nanny State... Much along the same idea, coming out of the Ferry Building in San Francisco a few days back when it was pouring with rain, someone had helpfully put out cones to warn me that I was entering the outside and that it was wet. The black sky, and cats and dogs falling from it might have also tipped me off, but thankfully I had the cones as confirmation :)
petercooper 18y ago
I just Googled around for objects in the mirror may appear closer than they are and objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear. Two totally different things. Thousands of results. Which one is actually true? Surely if objects are further away than they appear, it's pointless to note that since it's safe. So it has to be "Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear" right?
- likpok 18y ago
  "objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear" If you think about it, it is a concave mirror giving wider field of vision. Concave mirrors give virtual smaller images.
  - twopoint718 18y ago
    Convex mirrors will produce a smaller virtual image (behind the plane of the mirror) taken from a wider field of view. Concave mirrors will produce an inverted real image (for objects farther away than the focal length) or a larger virtual image (for objects inside the focal length).
cstejerean 18y ago
It's actually the opposite, objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear. In fact they are closer, this is for the passenger side mirrors. Cars always look farther away in it than in the driver side mirror or in the middle rear-view mirror

tlb 18y ago

I'm no proponent of the nanny state, but there is something to be said for standards. It's important that any driver be able to drive any car. Otherwise, a driver used to 1:1 mirrors who rented or borrowed a car with convex mirrors would underestimate the speed and distance of cars passing him.

deleted 18y ago

[deleted]