Aston Martin, Gentex Develop A Camera Based Rear Vision System

Gentex Corporation and Aston Martin announced that they’ve jointly developed a camera-based rear vision system for future Aston Martin vehicles. Integrated into an Aston Martin DBS Superleggera for demonstration, the first prototype of the system will be displayed in Gentex’s booth at the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

This unique rear vision system – known as a camera monitoring system (CMS) in the automotive industry – uses three cameras to provide a comprehensive view of the sides and rear of the vehicle. Side-view cameras are discretely housed in each of the vehicle’s exterior mirrors; their video feeds are combined with that of a roof-mounted camera and displayed together in multiple composite views that are streamed to the driver via a rear-view mirror-integrated display inside the cockpit.

The camera monitoring system (CMS) uses three cameras to provide a comprehensive view of the sides and rear of the vehicle

The Gentex and Aston Martin collaboration is part of an ongoing development program to bring CMS to future Aston Martin vehicles. For the current prototype, Aston Martin provided overall styling and engineering direction; Gentex integrated the system’s cameras, image processing software, and mirror-integrated display; and Gentex partnered with exterior mirror supplier Lumatech to engineer the exterior mirrors.

A key attribute of a hybrid CMS solution is that it enhances safety by ensuring the system is fail safe. Should weather conditions or system failure disrupt the digital view, drivers can still use their traditional interior and exterior mirrors. The new hybrid CMS also supports user preference and acceptance by permitting drivers to use standard mirror views, camera views, or a combination of both. The system can also be tuned to meet the various regulatory field-of-view requirements around the world by using different types of flat and curved glass, combined with simple alterations to the video viewing modes.

The Gentex/Aston Martin CMS solution also includes a unique auto-adjust feature that dynamically alters the video feeds from the exterior-mirror-integrated cameras to adjust for mirror position. When the driver adjusts the exterior mirrors, the system digitally optimizes the camera field-of-view to provide ideal sideward vision.

Central to the hybrid CMS solution is the Gentex rearview-mirror-integrated display known as a Full Display Mirror (FDM). The FDM can function as either a standard auto-dimming rearview mirror or as an LCD display. When used as a display for CMS, the driver can choose between various viewing modes that present the three camera feeds in various intuitive combination views.

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