Outside Rearview Mirror - Operation

OPERATION

The power operated outside rear view mirrors are connected to battery current at all times. Each mirror head contains two electric motors, two drive mechanisms, an electric heating element and the mirror glass. If the vehicle is equipped with the high current door power switch module configuration, hard wired ground and battery current outputs to each power mirror motor determine whether the horizontal or the vertical motor will be operated and the polarity of those outputs control the direction in which the motor will move the drive unit and mirror glass.

Power mirror and mirror switch functionality is the same with the low current configuration; however, the driver door power switch module sends power mirror switch status messages over the Local Interface Network (LIN) data bus to the driver front door control module. The driver front door control module then controls the high current outputs to the driver door mirror motors or sends electronic request messages over the Controller Area Network (CAN) Interior High Speed (IHS) data bus to the passenger front door control module to control high current outputs to the passenger door mirror motors.

The standard equipment power outside rear view mirrors are electrically heated. In the high current door power switch module configuration, the heater grid behind each mirror glass is energized whenever the rear window defogger relay is energized by the Totally Integrated Power Module (TIPM) in response to electronic defogger switch status messages received over the CAN data bus from the A/C-heater control. In the low current door power switch configuration each front door control module responds to the electronic defogger switch status messages received over the CAN data bus from the A/C-heater control to control the high current output to the heater grid of the mirror on the same door as appropriate.

On vehicles equipped with the optional driver side automatic dimming outside rear view mirror, the mirror reflectance is controlled by the driver front door control module based upon hard wired inputs received from the automatic dimming inside rear view mirror. On vehicles equipped with the optional signal mirrors, the turn signal Light Emitting Diode (LED) module in each mirror is controlled by the front door control module on the same door based upon electronic request messages received over the CAN data bus from the TIPM.

Vehicles manufactured for certain export markets are equipped with a power folding mirror option that includes another motor and drive unit in each outside mirror and a power folding mirror switch button located between the right and left power mirror selector buttons in the driver door power switch module. Each time the momentary power folding mirror switch button is depressed, both outside rear view mirrors are cycled from folded to unfolded, or from unfolded to folded. If the vehicle is equipped with the optional memory system, the driver side mirror head also contains both a horizontal and a vertical motor position sensor. When the memory set procedure is carried out, the memory module learns the outputs of the mirror position sensors so that those positions can be recalled later.

If the vehicle is equipped with the optional Blind Spot Monitor (BSM) system, an LED display unit behind the lower edge of each mirror glass illuminates an amber triangle to indicate to the vehicle operator that an object has been detected by the BSM system. The BSM LED display is controlled by the front door control modules based upon electronic messages received from the BSM control module over the CAN data bus.