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US 7,293,888 B2Granted
Rearview mirror assembly with utility functions
AssigneeDonnelly Corporation
InventorsBarry W Hutzel, Niall R Lynam, Darryl P DeWind, John O'Lindahl
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle includes a housing having a mirror casing and a support for mounting said mirror casing to a vehicle. The rearview mirror assembly further includes a retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory and which is adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via the housing to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system.
Claims27
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element disposed in said housing and a support for adjustably mounting said housing to an interior portion of a vehicle, said mirror reflective element providing a rearward field of view to a driver of the vehicle when said mirror assembly is mounted to the interior portion of the vehicle, said housing being adjustable relative to the interior portion of the vehicle to adjust the rearward field of view of said mirror reflective element to provide the driver with a driver-desired rearward field of view generally rearward and through a rear window of the vehicle;
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system;
- and
- wherein said retractable cord is extendable and retractable between an extended state, where a user of said mirror assembly pulls said retractable cord at least partially outward from said housing for coupling to the accessory, and a retracted state, where said retractable cord is retracted at least substantially into said housing.
1 more element
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for adjustably mounting said housing to an interior portion of a vehicle, said mirror reflective element providing a rearward field of view to a driver of the vehicle when said mirror assembly is mounted to the interior portion of the vehicle, said housing being adjustable relative to the interior portion of the vehicle to adjust the rearward field of view of said mirror reflective element to provide the driver with a driver-desired rearward field of view generally rearward and through a rear window of the vehicle;
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being at least partially retractable into said housing and further being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system;
- and
- wherein said retractable cord is extendable and retractable between an extended state, where a user of said mirror assembly pulls said retractable cord at least partially outward from said housing for coupling to the accessory, and a retracted state, where said retractable cord is retracted at least substantially into said housing.
1 more element
An interior rearview mirror assembly system for a vehicle, said mirror assembly system comprising:
- an interior rearview mirror assembly adapted for supporting one chosen from a notepad and a workpiece, said interior rearview mirror assembly comprising a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for adjustably mounting said housing to a vehicle, said mirror reflective element providing a rearward field of view to a driver of the vehicle when said mirror assembly is mounted to the interior portion of the vehicle, said housing being adjustable relative to the interior portion of the vehicle to adjust the rearward field of view of said mirror reflective element to provide the driver with a driver-desired rearview field of view generally rearward and through a rear window of the vehicle;
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being at least partially retractable into said interior rearview mirror assembly and further being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system;
- and
- wherein said retractable cord is extendable and retractable between an extended state, where a user of said mirror assembly pulls said retractable cord at least partially outward from said housing for coupling to the accessory, and a retracted state, where said retractable cord is retracted at least substantially into said housing.
1 more element
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for mounting said housing to a vehicle;
- and
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via said housing to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system, wherein said retractable cord includes a coupler that is adapted for coupling to the accessory, the accessory comprising one of a phone, a computer, and fax machine.
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for mounting said housing to a vehicle;
- and
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via said housing to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system, wherein said retractable cord includes at least one fiber-optic cable.
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for mounting said housing to a vehicle;
- and
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via said housing to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system, wherein said retractable cord comprises a universal serial bus cable.
An interior rearview mirror assembly for a vehicle, said mirror assembly comprising:
- a housing, a mirror reflective element and a support for mounting said housing to a vehicle;
- and
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being at least partially retractable into said housing and further being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via said housing to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system, wherein said housing includes a recessed portion, said retractable cord being at least partially retractable into said recessed portion, and wherein said retractable cord includes a coupler that is adapted for coupling to the accessory, the accessory comprising one of a phone, a computer, and fax machine.
An interior rearview mirror assembly system for a vehicle, said mirror assembly system comprising:
- an interior rearview mirror assembly adapted for supporting one chosen from a notepad and a workpiece;
- and
- a retractable cord, said retractable cord for use by an occupant of the vehicle for coupling to an accessory, said retractable cord being at least partially retractable into said interior rearview mirror assembly and further being adapted to couple the accessory to a vehicle system via said interior rearview mirror assembly to provide a link between the accessory and the vehicle system, wherein said cord is adapted to couple to a vehicle antenna such that when a phone is coupled to said cord, said cord couples the phone to the antenna.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.