8 Things To Know About Back-Up Cameras: As rearview cameras become ubiquitous, heres what you need to know about how they work, how effective they are, what car companies offer them and more: 1. Back-up camera systems will have to meet federal standards, but how they operate varies. The button-size devices are positioned so drivers can see people or objects that are otherwise undetectable using a side or rearview mirror or by glancing over their shoulder. When NHTSAs rear visibility regulation takes effect, it will require rearview technology to display a 10-by-20-foot area directly behind the vehicle. The rule also requires systems to show the driver an image of the area no more than 2 seconds after they put the vehicle into reverse. According to the rule, 10 percent of automakers new vehicles must have the equipment by May 1, 2016, 40 percent by May 1, 2017 and all models by May 1, 2018. Back-up cameras send images to a display through wires inside the car, or in the case of some aftermarket equipment, wirelessly, using radio waves or a Bluetooth connection. Automakers configure back-up cameras to transmit images to a vehicles built-in dashboard display or rearview mirror. For add-on cameras, the images go to a monitor mounted to the dashboard and a receiver plugged into the auxiliary power. Current rearview cameras have either narrow or wide, fish-eye-style lenses, for capturing images of a larger area. Some automakers tuck the cameras out of the way until theyre needed, with an eye toward improving aerodynamics and design or to keep the lens clean. The Volkswagen CC , for example, houses a back-up camera behind the VW badge on the cars trunk, just above the license plate. When the driver starts the car or puts it in reverse, the emblem flips open and the camera appears, like a cuckoo popping out of a clock. It retracts when the driver switches out of reverse or drives over 10 mph, says Thomas Zorn, Volkswagen Group of Americas general manager of...
Posted on: Mon, 23 Jun 2014 19:10:04 +0000
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