Blogspam.<p>Original press release from Drexel University: <a href="http://www.drexel.edu/now/news-media/releases/archive/2012/June/Drivers-Side-Mirror-With-No-Blind-Spot-Receives-US-Patent/" rel="nofollow">http://www.drexel.edu/now/news-media/releases/archive/2012/J...</a> Added value in PhysOrg article: zero.<p>Please, everyone, <i>stop submitting links from PhysOrg and ScienceDaily</i>. I have never ever ever seen anything on those sites that isn't either (1) bullshit or (2) a recycled press release with zero (or often negative) added value. (Sometimes it's both at once.) It only takes ten seconds' googling to find the original source.
Why do you have blind spots in the first place?<p><a href="http://www.caranddriver.com/features/how-to-adjust-your-mirrors-to-avoid-blind-spots" rel="nofollow">http://www.caranddriver.com/features/how-to-adjust-your-mirr...</a><p>"The paper advocates adjusting the mirrors so far outward that the viewing angle of the side mirrors just overlaps that of the cabin’s rearview mirror." I've been driving this way for a long time, and it's great. You can already see behind you: you don't need 2 more mirrors showing you the same thing.
<i>In the United States, regulations dictate that cars coming off of the assembly line must have a flat mirror on the driver's side. Curved mirrors are allowed for cars' passenger-side mirrors only if they include the phrase "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear."<p>Because of these regulations, Hicks's mirrors will not be installed on new cars sold in the U.S. any time soon. The mirror may be manufactured and sold as an aftermarket product that drivers and mechanics can install on cars after purchase. Some countries in Europe and Asia do allow slightly curved mirrors on new cars. Hicks has received interest from investors and manufacturers who may pursue opportunities to license and produce the mirror.</i>
He was my math prof. Here's a gallery of his crazy mirrors: <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/gallery/dn16585-amazing-mirrors/3" rel="nofollow">http://www.newscientist.com/gallery/dn16585-amazing-mirrors/...</a><p>When I saw the article title, I immediately knew it was Dr. Hicks because he would talk about his work occasionally in class when it was related to what we were studying.<p>Also, if you're at Drexel, you should take his math courses. He's easily the best math teacher I've ever had, and I didn't know it until after I graduated. All his classes seemed really easy, but in the last course I took he said something that made me realize how good he was. He said, "Before we get into the math, I want to give you an intuition of how this works." Later I realized that his courses like cryptography and multivariate calculus were so easy is because he knew how to give you that intuition and the mathematics came almost naturally after that.
This is just beautiful. Practical application of maths. I would love to get my hands on one of these when it is done.<p>Glad that he has a patent for that. He should be justly rewarded for coming out with this road safety feature.<p>To those that believe that there is prior art, do note that the patent granted is for "Wide angle substantially non-distorting mirror". It is not just any curve mirror, it is unlike normal curve mirror which distorts the image, from the picture, you can see that there doesn't appear to be any distortion, which is what makes his mirror unique
A lot of new cars I've seen have partial curve to alleviate the blind spot.<p>But what often goes unmentioned is adjusting an older, flat mirror correctly in the first place. I used to adjust mine so that a tiny portion of my car was in the lower right hand corner of the mirror. After a few years, I realised that adjusting the mirror out, further away from the car, gave me the widest and most practical view for driving of the lane to the left of me.
I can't believe this is something that someone needed to "invent".<p>I bought a $5 concave mirror that I attached to the outer edge of my wife's mirrors, and they work better than this!
I already had a side mirror that eliminates blind spot a few years ago on my Peugeot 207 (I live in Europe) although it didn't have such an angle of vision.<p>Even though it's a neat invention, I still have to vomit every time I read the word "patent". And to say crooks are working hard to bring these to Europe
Curved mirrors dont eliminate the blind spot, they reduce it. Perhaps this curved mirror reduce the blind spot to a very small area, but I submit a bicycle or pedestrian could still fit in it.
Relevant: <a href="http://www.quora.com/Why-haven-t-cars-yet-solved-the-problem-of-the-blind-spot-in-wing-mirrors" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/Why-haven-t-cars-yet-solved-the-problem...</a><p>Apparently most people set up their mirrors incorrectly by overlapping view paths, when it would in fact be better if things moved between mirrors without any overlap (e.g. rear view mirror covers the back whilst the side mirrors cover blind spots - no overlap in between).<p>I've tried it out and it feels rather weird, but I must say I've found it quite effective. I still do head checks, but mostly just out of habit, and it's a good extra check to use just before you change lanes.