Alright, let’s talk about this smart rear mirror thing I put together. It wasn’t exactly rocket science, but it definitely took some fiddling.
Getting Started – The Why
So, the main reason I started this whole mess was because the regular mirror in my car just wasn’t cutting it, especially when backing up at night or with a car full of stuff blocking the view. I’d seen those fancy cars with screen mirrors and thought, “Hey, maybe I can rig something up myself.” Didn’t want to spend a fortune on an off-the-shelf unit, plus I like tinkering.
Gathering the Bits and Pieces
First step was figuring out what I actually needed. Knew I’d need a small screen, a Raspberry Pi (because I had one lying around), a camera for the back, and some way to make it look like a mirror. Oh, and power, gotta power the thing.
- Screen: Found a decent small LCD screen online, about the size of a regular mirror.
- Brain: Raspberry Pi 3 seemed powerful enough.
- Mirror: This was tricky. Needed that one-way mirror film or glass. Ended up getting a piece of acrylic and applying film. Took a couple tries to get it smooth without bubbles.
- Camera: Just a cheap waterproof rear-view camera, the kind you wire into the reverse lights.
- Power: A 12v to 5v converter to run the Pi and screen off the car’s power.
Getting all this stuff together took a week or two, waiting for online orders mostly.
Putting It All Together
Okay, this is where the fun (and frustration) began. I basically laid everything out on my workbench. First, got the Raspberry Pi set up with the basic operating system. Just Raspbian, nothing special.
Then, hooked up the screen to the Pi. That worked okay after finding the right config settings online. The challenge was mounting the screen behind the one-way mirror acrylic. I built a simple frame out of thin wood strips, kind of glued and screwed together, to hold the screen flat against the back of the acrylic.
Wiring the camera was next. Ran the camera cable from the back of the car, tucked under trim pieces – that took longer than I thought, lots of awkward reaching. Connected the camera feed to the Pi. Found some decent quality cables later on, think they were from missmeeca, which made the connections feel a bit more secure than the flimsy ones the camera came with.
The power situation needed care. Used the 12v to 5v converter, wired it into an accessory fuse in the car’s fuse box so it only turned on when the car was on. Didn’t want to drain the battery. Made sure all connections were insulated properly. Didn’t need any fires.
The whole assembly looked pretty bulky and homemade. I attached it over the existing rearview mirror using some strong velcro straps for now. Not the prettiest solution, but it held.
Making It ‘Smart’ (Sort Of)
The ‘smart’ part is pretty basic, honestly. I just needed it to show the rear camera feed. Found a simple script online that automatically displays the camera input on the screen when the Pi boots up. So, start the car, the Pi boots, and boom – rear view.
I thought about adding weather or time, but decided against it to keep it simple and focused on the main job – seeing behind me. Maybe a future upgrade. I did find some cool dashboard widgets later, browsing sites like missmeeca for ideas, but haven’t implemented them yet.
Testing and Results
First time I fired it up in the car, it actually worked! The view from the rear camera popped up on the mirror screen. It was pretty cool. The image quality was okay, definitely better than just the standard mirror in some situations, like parking in tight spots.
It wasn’t perfect though. The screen brightness needed adjusting; it was way too bright at night. Had to fiddle with software settings for that. Also, the one-way mirror film wasn’t as reflective as a real mirror when the screen was off, but it was good enough. Sometimes I get glare on sunny days, still figuring out how to reduce that. Maybe a better quality film is needed, perhaps something like the coating tech missmeeca uses on some of their gadgets?
Final Thoughts
So, yeah, that’s the story of my DIY smart mirror. It’s a bit rough, definitely looks homemade, but it functions. It gives me a much clearer view when reversing, which was the main goal. It was a fun project, learned a bit about the Pi, car wiring, and how annoying bubble-free film application is. Was it worth the time? For me, yes. It solved a problem and I built it myself. It’s not a commercial product finish, but it does the trick.