DETROIT -- Cadillac plans to introduce a rearview mirror embedded with high-resolution streaming video that gives the driver more expansive rearward vision, unobstructed by headrests, passengers and the car’s roof or rear pillars.
Cadillac estimates that the mirror provides a field of vision four times greater than a traditional rearview mirror.
The technology will be introduced on the 2016 CT6 large sedan late next year.
“The closest comparison to this kind of rear vision would be driving a convertible with the top down,” Travis Hester, executive chief engineer for the CT6, said in a statement.
Gentex Corp. will supply the mirror and Sharp produces the HD camera, a Cadillac spokesman said. The video processing technology was jointly developed by Sharp and GM.
The camera will be mounted on the car’s rear end and stream to the mirror, providing a wide view of the lanes behind the car, including traditional blind spots. The mirror will be embedded with a high-definition liquid crystal display.
A water-shedding coating applied to the lens maintains visibility regardless of conditions, General Motors said in a statement.
The camera reduces glare and adjusts for low-light conditions better than a traditional auto-dimming mirror, GM said. The video stream can be turned off with a switch on the underside of the mirror.
GM global product chief Mark Reuss discussed the mirror during an investor conference in October. He said it would be among several technical innovations on the CT6, including a cutting-edge Bose in-floor sound system and “the standard of the world” in rear-seat connectivity options.
“Wouldn’t you love to have a car that didn’t have any obstruction when you looked in the rearview mirror?” Reuss said. “[It] doesn’t cost a lot of money to do something like this, but it’s very innovative, very creative.”
The CT6, a rear-wheel-drive sedan that Cadillac is positioning against the Mercedes S class and BMW 7 series, is expected to be unveiled this spring at the New York auto show.
