US 5,497,306 · Granted 1996-03-05
The Mirror Light That Turned Side Mirrors Into Security Beacons
Imagine a light bulb that snaps right into your car's side mirror to shine downward or backward, warning other drivers and lighting up dark areas around your vehicle. It's sealed tight against rain and snow, and you can swap out the bulb without any tools—just pop the whole module out and replace the light source.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a removable light module that fits inside an exterior vehicle mirror housing with a moisture-proof enclosure, a light source that shines down or backward, and a design where the module stays in place through the mirror's own shape rather than requiring multiple bolts or fasteners. What's protected here is the specific way the light module clicks and self-retains inside the mirror, plus the sealed construction that keeps water out while the light beams through a protected opening.
Why it matters
This patent solved a real automotive design problem: how to add security and warning lights to mirrors without drilling extra holes, using messy wiring, or creating leak points in the vehicle body. By embedding the light inside the mirror assembly itself and making it user-replaceable, Donnelly created a cleaner, more durable solution that automakers could build into mirrors as a standard safety feature without major redesign.
Real-world use
Every time a modern vehicle's side mirror includes a downward-facing puddle light or perimeter light, you're likely seeing a descendant of this snap-in design. The next time you see a car mirror glow to illuminate the ground below the door, that's this patent's legacy at work.
Original USPTO abstract
A mirror assembly security system for a vehicle includes an exterior mirror assembly and a light module removably positioned within the exterior mirror housing. The light module is moisture impervious and includes an enclosure, a light-transmitting opening in the enclosure facing generally downwardly and/or rearwardly of the vehicle, a cover for the light-transmitting opening, and a light source in the enclosure radiating light through the light-transmitting opening. The light source may be received in a socket which removably engages another opening in the enclosure. In this manner, the light source may be replaced by removing the module from the exterior mirror housing, removing the socket from the enclosure and replacing the light source. The enclosure and mirror housing preferably are configured to self-retain the module in the exterior mirror moving with no, or fewer than one or two, separate fasteners.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,497,306
- Filing date
- 1995-04-21
- Grant date
- 1996-03-05
- Assignee
- Donnelly Corporation
- Inventor(s)
- PASTRICK; TODD W.
- CPC class
- B60Q1/2665
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