Interpretation ID: 21278tvneb
Mr. Shigeyoshi Aihara
Project Manager, Regulation and Compliance
Engineering Administration Department
Ichikoh Industries, Ltd.
80 Itado Ischara City
Kanagawa - Pref 259-1192
JAPAN
Dear Mr. Aihara:
This responds to your December 23, 1999, letter regarding the acceptability of the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System for use in the North American automotive market.
You stated in your letter that your company produces the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System, which is a camera and display monitor system that provides visibility directly behind a vehicle on which the system is installed. The system you describe is composed of a camera and monitor display. The monitor display, which has two variations (Type A: LCD monitor built into the interior rearview mirror and Type B: 5.8 inch monitor display), is automatically switched on when the ignition switch and the reverse gear are engaged and allows the driver to see the area behind the truck. The intent is to make visible the area behind the vehicle where a "blind spot" typically exists. As you state, the system will be installed in multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses as an aftermarket product. If a vehicle has an inside rearview mirror, you intend the monitor to replace the mirror. Otherwise, the monitor display will be newly installed.
As a preliminary matter, the laws and regulations that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) administers are applicable only in the United States. You should contact the officials of other North American countries to answer your questions about the acceptability of your system in those countries.
By way of background information, the NHTSA has the statutory authority to issue Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSSs) applicable to new motor vehicles and new items of motor vehicle equipment. Federal law establishes a self-certification system under which motor vehicle and equipment manufacturers themselves certify that their products comply withy all applicable standards. For that reason, NHTSA neither tests, approves, disapproves, endorses, nor grants letters of approval of products prior to their introduction into the retail market. Rather, we enforce compliance with the standards by purchasing vehicles and equipment and testing them. We also investigate safety-related defects.
We would classify the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System as an item of motor vehicle equipment regulated by NHTSA. Our statute defines "motor vehicle equipment" in 49 U.S. Code (U.S.C.) 30102(a)(7)(B) in relevant part as any system, part, or component "sold ... as an accessory or addition to a motor vehicle." An item of equipment is an accessory if it meets the following criteria:
a. A substantial portion of its expected uses are related to the operation or maintenance of motor vehicles; and
b. It is purchased or otherwise acquired, and principally used by ordinary users of motor vehicles.
After reviewing your letter and its enclosed product brochure, we conclude that the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System is an accessory. It was designed with the expectation that a substantial portion of its expected use will be with motor vehicles. Further, the pictures of the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System in the brochure make it clear that the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System is intended to be purchased and principally used by ordinary users of motor vehicles, mostly truck drivers, to monitor the area behind the truck which is typically a "blind spot."
While the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System is a motor vehicle accessory, NHTSA has not issued any FMVSSs establishing performance standards directly applicable to this product. We have ongoing rulemaking considering establishing performance for rear object detection systems (e.g., video, sonic, mirror systems, etc.). We expect to publish an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on this in the near future. However, the manufacturer, whether you or a licensee, is subject to the requirements of 49 U.S.C. 30118-30121 (copy enclosed) which set forth the notification and remedy (recall) requirements for products with defects related to motor vehicle safety. Thus, if NHTSA or the manufacturer determines that the product contains a safety-related defect, the manufacturer is responsible for notifying purchasers of the defective equipment and for remedying the problem free of charge. The installation of the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System by a commercial entity is also subject to certain restrictions, as discussed below.
Our statute at 49 U.S.C. 30122 (copy enclosed) provides that a manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or vehicle repair business may not knowingly "make inoperative" any device or element of design installed on or in a motor vehicle in accordance with any FMVSS. Therefore, the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System could not be installed by any of those entities if such use would adversely affect the compliance of a vehicle with any FMVSS.
NHTSA has issued Standard No. 111, Rearview Mirrors, to establish performance and location requirements for rearview mirrors in each new motor vehicle. "Inside" rearview mirrors are required for "multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses, other than school buses, with GVWR of 4,536 kg or less," under one alternative of the standard (paragraph (a) of S6.1). If a vehicle manufacturer met Standard No. 111's requirements by way of an inside rearview mirror, an entity listed in 49 U.S.C. 30122 could not replace the mirror with your camera monitor system, unless the system continued to meet the performance and scope of view requirements of the standard. Inside rearview mirrors are not required for multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses with GVWR greater than 4,536 kg. The installation of your camera monitor system in those vehicles would not interfere with the operation of a required "inside" rearview mirror and thus would be permitted. However, the vehicles will continue to be subject to the rearview mirror requirements of sections S6, S7 and S8 of Standard No. 111 and all other relevant requirements.
Next, I would like to draw your attention to one requirement of Standard No. 101, Controls and Displays. Section S5.3.5 of that standard reads as follows:
Any source of illumination within the passenger compartment which is forward of a transverse vertical plane 110 mm rearward of the manikan "H" point with the driver's seat in its rearmost driving position, which is not used for the controls and displays regulated by this standard, which is not a telltale, and which is capable of being illuminated while the vehicle is in motion, shall have either (1) light intensity which is manually or automatically adjustable to provide at least two levels of brightness, (2) a single intensity that is barely discernible to a driver who has adapted to dark ambient roadway conditions, or (3) a means of being turned off. This requirement does not apply to buses that are normally operated with the passenger compartment illuminated.
The purpose of this requirement is to prevent glare visible to the driver. The monitor's glare should be controlled as described in S5.3.5.
Also, I would like to draw your attention to Standard No. 201, Occupant Protection in Interior Impact, which applies to "....multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses, with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms or less." You should carefully review this standard to determine whether installation of the Safety Vision Camera Monitor System in vehicles subject to Standard No. 201 would affect a vehicle's compliance with the standard.
The "make inoperative" provision does not apply to equipment attached to or installed on or in a vehicle by the vehicle owner. However, NHTSA urges vehicle owners not to degrade the safety of any system or device on their vehicles, including those required by Standard Nos. 101, 111 and 201, as discussed above.
I note that the Department's Office of Motor Carrier Safety has jurisdiction over interstate motor carriers operating in the U.S. You should contact that office at (202) 366-4012 for information about any requirements that may apply to your product. In addition, states have the authority to regulate the use and licensing of vehicles operating within their jurisdictions and may prohibit monitor displays. Therefore, you should therefore check with the Department of Motor Vehicles in any state in which the equipment will be sold or used.
Also, there is a procedural regulation that you need to meet to import your Safety Vision Camera Monitor System into the United States. 49 CFR Part 551, "Procedural Rules," requires the actual manufacturer of foreign-manufactured motor vehicle equipment to designate a permanent resident of the United States as the manufacturer's agent for service of process in this country. The designation of the agent for the service of process must contain the following six items in order to be valid under section 551.45:
1. A certification that the designation is valid in form and binding on the manufacturer under the laws, corporate by-laws, or other requirements governing the making of the designation at the time and place where it is made;
2. The full legal name, principal place of business, and mailing address of the manufacturer;
3. Marks, trade names, or other designations of the origin of any of the manufacturer's products which do not bear its name;
4. A statement that the designation shall remain in effect until withdrawn or replaced by the manufacturer;
5. A declaration of acceptance duly signed by the agent appointed, which may be an individual, a firm, or a U.S. corporation; and
6. The full legal name and address of the designated agent.
In addition, the designation must be signed by one with authority to appoint the agent, and the signer's name and title should be clearly indicated beneath his or her signature. This designation should be mailed to the address shown in section 551.45(b).
For your further information, I am enclosing a fact sheet we prepared entitled Information for New Manufacturers of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Equipment, and Where to Obtain NHTSA's Safety Standards and Regulations.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any questions or need additional information, feel free to contact Nancy Bell of my staff at (202) 366-2992.
Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
Enclosures
ref:111#101#201
d.4/21/2000