Exterior rearview mirrors are devices mounted on both sides of a vehicle's exterior, primarily serving to help the driver monitor road conditions behind and to the sides of the vehicle. Typically composed of a mirror surface, a housing, and an adjustment mechanism, they act like a pair of "small ears," constantly providing the driver with a view of the area behind the vehicle. Modern exterior mirrors often integrate features such as turn signals and heating/defogging functions, serving as vital components that assist in intelligent driving.
These mirrors typically utilize convex glass (or dual-curvature convex glass). Convex mirrors produce images smaller than the actual objects but offer a wider field of view than flat mirrors-similar to a wide-angle camera lens-thereby minimizing blind spots. Dual-curvature designs combine the advantages of both convex and flat mirrors: the outer section features high curvature to expand the field of view, while the inner section features lower curvature to ensure accurate distance perception, keeping the margin of error within 5%.