Rear parking camera
How does a rear parking camera work?
A rear parking camera is a wide-angle lens fitted to the rear of the car, which transmits a live image of the area directly behind the car when reverse gear is selected. The picture from the camera is usually displayed in the infotainment screen in the centre of the dashboard.
Related Jargon
Parking assist systems use cameras and sensors to help a driver park a car safely.
An infotainment system controls a car’s information and entertainment functions, usually through a screen mounted on the dashboard or in the centre console.
Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) have been developed to automate many of a car’s safety systems, with the aim of reducing the chances of human error, which account for over 90% of all collisions on the road.
Parking sensors are designed to alert the driver of obstacles when parking, sounding an alarm if the car is too close to a nearby object.
A lane departure warning (LDW) system is a form of electronic driver assistance that warns the driver when their car begins to stray outside of its lane.
A car’s satellite navigation system, or sat nav, uses the information from GPS satellites to work out its latitude, longitude, altitude and movement.
Android Auto is a way of linking your smartphone to a car and are designed to help improve safety and convenience.
Pedestrian detection systems are one of the current generation of driver assistance systems that use radar and cameras to spot potential collisions.
MirrorLink allows drivers to sync their smartphones with their car’s infotainment system so they can safely access many of the smartphone’s features while driving.
A rear parking camera is a wide-angle lens fitted to the rear of the car, which transmits a live image of the area directly behind the car when reverse gear is selected.
LiDAR - ‘light detection and ranging’ - is a type of sensor that works by sending out pulses of infrared light millions of times a second, and measures how long they take to come back after bouncing off objects close to it.
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a network of satellites that sends information about time and location to a vehicle’s navigation system.
The centre console is the area in the middle of the dashboard that contains the buttons and switches for operating most of the car’s functions.
Apple CarPlay allows iPhone owners to connect their phone to a car and show an iOS screen on the infotainment system display.