Gentex, the Michigan based manufacturer of automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, has reportedly reduced the cost of a blind spot camera by integrating the video feed into the rearview mirror. The video-display mirror uses an LCD device to give a panoramic video feed of objects behind the vehicle in real time.

According to the non-profit KidsandCars.org, over 60 percent of accidents where a child is hit while backing up involve larger vehicles, and 70 percent of the time a family member at the wheel. To avoid such tragedies in SUVs and trucks, the Gentex blind spot camera captures the rear feed from behind the vehicle and then illuminates that image on the rearview mirror. The display automatically illuminates the rearview mirror when the car is put in reverse, then disappears when the car shifts to drive. This is made possible with proprietary "transflective" coatings developed by Gentex.

In February, the Senate introduced a bill that would require a "rearward visibility standard that would allow drivers to detect persons or objects behind their vehicle." The Gentex blind spot camera should help meet that standard and cut down on the amount of children accidentally hit by cars backing up. Gentex plans to begin mass production of the technology within a year.