US 5,414,461 · Granted 1995-05-09
Nissan's 1995 3D Glasses Patent That Let Drivers See Behind Them
Imagine wearing special 3D glasses in your car that show you a crystal-clear view behind you when reversing, then instantly switch to a forward view when driving normally. Nissan patented this system using two rear-facing cameras and liquid crystal screens built into the glasses, creating a solid three-dimensional image instead of flat mirrors.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a wearable optical system where the driver wears glasses with individual screens for each eye, fed by camera feeds and controlled by a switchable half-mirror that can toggle between forward and rearward video sources. What's protected here is the specific combination of dual liquid crystal displays mounted in ocular glasses, synchronized camera switching, and the optical mechanism that lets the driver see either forward or backward three-dimensional imagery without removing the glasses.
Why it matters
This patent represents an early attempt to replace traditional mirrors and backup cameras with immersive head-mounted video technology. While the approach didn't become mainstream, it anticipated concepts now being explored in modern automotive AR and advanced driver-assistance systems. It shows how automakers were experimenting with digital alternatives to purely mechanical viewing solutions decades before self-driving car technology emerged.
Real-world use
When backing up, instead of twisting your neck to check the rearview mirror, you'd look through the glasses and see a live three-dimensional video feed of what's behind your car as if you had eyes in the back of your head.
Original USPTO abstract
In an apparatus for controllably supplying visual information for a viewer, an optical system including ocular glasses corresponding to right and left eyes of the driver (viewer) is provided so that images on a pair of liquid crystal televisions are introduced to the pair of ocular glasses to provide a three-dimensional solid image. Two television cameras are installed on a vehicle so as to be faced in the rearward direction with their bodies juxtaposed to each other. When the vehicle is reversed, a reflectivity of a half mirror is maximized so that a rearward scenery can be viewed via the ocular glasses in the form of a solid image. During the forwarding of the vehicle, a forward field of view is produced for a half mirror with a transmissivity of the half mirror maximized.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,414,461
- Filing date
- 1992-11-12
- Grant date
- 1995-05-09
- Assignee
- Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
- Inventor(s)
- KISHI; NORIMASA, TAKADA; MASAYUKI
- CPC class
- B60R1/31
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