Vehicular driver monitoring system

A vehicular driver monitoring system, the vehicular driver monitoring system comprising:

• an interior rearview mirror assembly comprising a mirror head adjustable about a mounting structure configured to mount the interior rearview mirror assembly at an interior portion of an interior cabin of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular driver monitoring system, wherein the mirror head accommodates a mirror reflective element having a transflective mirror reflector;
• wherein the interior portion of the equipped vehicle comprises an in-cabin side of a windshield of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein the equipped vehicle comprises a centerline axis that longitudinally bisects the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, and with a driver of the equipped vehicle seated at a driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle, the mirror head is adjustable by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to adjust a rearward view provided by the mirror reflective element to the driver of the equipped vehicle;
• a driver monitoring camera accommodated by the mirror head behind the mirror reflective element and views through the transflective mirror reflector of the mirror reflective element;
• a near infrared light emitter accommodated by the mirror head behind the mirror reflective element, wherein the near infrared light emitter, when electrically powered to emit light, emits near infrared light that passes through the transflective mirror reflector of the mirror reflective element;
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, the driver monitoring camera and the near infrared light emitter move together and in tandem with the mirror head when the mirror head is adjusted by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to provide the rearward view to the driver of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein a principal viewing axis of the driver monitoring camera is not parallel to a normal vector of the mirror reflective element that extends perpendicular from a planar front surface of the mirror reflective element;
• and
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, and with the mirror head adjusted by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to provide the rearward view to the driver of the equipped vehicle, (i) the normal vector of the mirror reflective element is angled away from the centerline axis that longitudinally bisects the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and toward the driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and (ii) the principal viewing axis of the driver monitoring camera is angled more toward the centerline axis of the equipped vehicle than the normal vector of the mirror reflective element so that the driver monitoring camera views at least a portion of the driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and at least a portion of a passenger side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle.

A vehicular driver monitoring system, the vehicular driver monitoring system comprising:

• an interior rearview mirror assembly comprising a mirror head adjustable about a mounting structure configured to mount the interior rearview mirror assembly at an interior portion of an interior cabin of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular driver monitoring system, wherein the mirror head accommodates an electrochromic mirror reflective element;
• wherein the interior portion of the equipped vehicle comprises an in-cabin side of a windshield of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein the electrochromic mirror reflective element comprises a front planar glass substrate and a rear planar glass substrate;
• wherein the front planar glass substrate comprises a first planar glass surface separated from a second planar glass surface by a plate thickness dimension of the front planar glass substrate;
• wherein the rear planar glass substrate comprises a third planar glass surface separated from a fourth planar glass surface by a plate thickness dimension of the rear planar glass substrate;
• wherein the second planar glass surface of the front planar glass substrate has a transparent electrically conductive coating disposed thereat, and wherein the third planar glass surface of the rear planar glass substrate has a mirror reflector disposed thereat, and wherein an electrochromic medium is disposed between and contacts the transparent electrically conductive coating disposed at the second planar glass surface of the front planar glass substrate and the mirror reflector disposed at the third planar glass surface of the rear planar glass substrate;
• wherein the equipped vehicle comprises a centerline axis that longitudinally bisects the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, and with a driver of the equipped vehicle seated at a driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle, the mirror head is adjustable by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to adjust a rearward view provided by the electrochromic mirror reflective element to the driver of the equipped vehicle;
• a driver monitoring camera accommodated by the mirror head;
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, the driver monitoring camera moves together and in tandem with the mirror head when the mirror head is adjusted by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to provide the rearward view to the driver of the equipped vehicle;
• wherein a principal viewing axis of the driver monitoring camera is not parallel to a normal vector of the electrochromic mirror reflective element that extends perpendicular from the first planar glass surface of the electrochromic mirror reflective element;
• and
• wherein, with the interior rearview mirror assembly mounted at the interior portion of the equipped vehicle, and with the mirror head adjusted by the driver of the equipped vehicle relative to the mounting structure to provide the rearward view to the driver of the equipped vehicle, (i) the normal vector of the electrochromic mirror reflective element is angled away from the centerline axis that longitudinally bisects the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and toward the driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and (ii) the principal viewing axis of the driver monitoring camera is angled more toward the centerline axis of the equipped vehicle than the normal vector of the electrochromic mirror reflective element so that the driver monitoring camera views at least a portion of the driver side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle and at least a portion of a passenger side of the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle where a front passenger seat is located within the interior cabin of the equipped vehicle.