Aerodynamic analysis and noise-reducing design of an outside rear view mirror

Abstract

The outside rear view mirror (OSRVM) is installed on the exterior of vehicles to secure the side and rear views of the vehicle, but its extruded design causes unwanted aerodynamic noise and vibration during driving. In this study, additional line holes (inner dents) are made on the inner and outer edges of the mirror housing without a reduction in size in order to enhance the aerodynamic flow and noise around the mirror. Based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis, this study compares the aerodynamic characteristics of the original and modified mirror models. The comparative analyses verify that the proposed OSRVM model with the inner ducts dramatically improves the velocity profiles and sound pressure levels.