Gentex is a company specializing in fire protection and automotive products based in
Zeeland, MichiganZeeland is a city in Ottawa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,805 at the 2000 census. The city is located at the western edge of Zeeland Charter Township which is politically independent. Its name is derived from the Dutch province of Zeeland...
, USA.
Gentex was founded in 1974 by Fred Bauer as a manufacturer of fire protection products. The company created the first dual-sensor photoelectric
smoke detectorA smoke detector is a device that detects smoke. Commercial, industrial, and mass residential devices issue a signal to a fire alarm system, while household detectors, known as smoke alarms, generally issue a local audible and/or visual alarm from the detector itself.Smoke detectors are typically...
, considered to be less prone to
false alarmA false alarm, also called a nuisance alarm, is the phony report of an emergency, causing unnecessary panic and/or bringing resources to a place where they are not needed. Over time, repeated false alarms in a certain area may cause occupants to start to ignore all alarms, knowing that each time...
s, while still quickly detecting smoldering fires. In the early 1990's, Gentex introduced a smoke detector equipped with a
strobeStrobe light or stroboscopic lamp, commonly called a strobe, is a device used to produce regular flashes of light. It is one of a number of devices that can be used as a stroboscope...
light designed to alert the hearing impaired.
Gentex is a company specializing in fire protection and automotive products based in
Zeeland, MichiganZeeland is a city in Ottawa County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 5,805 at the 2000 census. The city is located at the western edge of Zeeland Charter Township which is politically independent. Its name is derived from the Dutch province of Zeeland...
, USA.
Fire protection
Gentex was founded in 1974 by Fred Bauer as a manufacturer of fire protection products. The company created the first dual-sensor photoelectric
smoke detectorA smoke detector is a device that detects smoke. Commercial, industrial, and mass residential devices issue a signal to a fire alarm system, while household detectors, known as smoke alarms, generally issue a local audible and/or visual alarm from the detector itself.Smoke detectors are typically...
, considered to be less prone to
false alarmA false alarm, also called a nuisance alarm, is the phony report of an emergency, causing unnecessary panic and/or bringing resources to a place where they are not needed. Over time, repeated false alarms in a certain area may cause occupants to start to ignore all alarms, knowing that each time...
s, while still quickly detecting smoldering fires. In the early 1990's, Gentex introduced a smoke detector equipped with a
strobeStrobe light or stroboscopic lamp, commonly called a strobe, is a device used to produce regular flashes of light. It is one of a number of devices that can be used as a stroboscope...
light designed to alert the hearing impaired. Today, Gentex manufactures a complete line of photoelectric detectors for fire alarm systems, standalone, and interconnect systems. Gentex also manufactures it's Commander series horn/strobes, along with other notification appliances including speaker/strobes, mini-horns, bells, and weatherproof devices.
Automatic interior mirror
Gentex first introduced a
rear-view mirrorA rear-view mirror is a mirror in automobiles and other vehicles, designed to allow the driver to see rearward through the vehicle's backlight ....
that automatically adjusted to glare conditions in 1982.
Interior
Gentex introduced an automatic dimming mirror based on
electrochromicsElectrochromism is the phenomenon displayed by some materials of reversibly changing color when a burst of charge is applied. Various types of materials and structures can be used to construct electrochromic devices, depending on the specific applications....
in 1987. The reduction of glare eliminates the temporary blind spot caused by the Troxler effect after the glare source leaves the field of view.
These mirrors have forward and rearward facing sensors to measure the ambient light level and glare of approaching vehicles, respectively. An electrochromic gel is placed between two pieces of glass, which allows the mirror to dim in proportion to the glare level.
Exterior
In 1991, exterior electrochromic mirrors were added to the Gentex product line. These mirrors operate on the same principle as the interior mirrors. Different mirror geometries were added in 1997 to accomplish various tasks, such as eliminating blind spots and offering an expanded field of view.
Additional features
- Compass/Temperature display
- Map light - Gentex was the first to introduce cost-effective high-intensity LED lighting into the bottom of the rear-view mirror in 1999.
- OnStar
OnStar Corporation is a subsidiary of General Motors that provides subscription-based communications, in-vehicle security, hands free calling, turn-by-turn navigation, and remote diagnostics systems throughout the United States and Canada. OnStar services are only available currently on vehicles...
- HomeLink Wireless Control System
The HomeLink Wireless Control System is a radio frequency transmitter integrated into some automobiles that can be programmed to activate devices such as garage door openers, RF-controlled lighting, gates and locks, including those with rolling codes....
- Tire pressure indicator
- SmartBeam (an automatic highbeam assistant)
- Automotive grade microphones
- Rear camera display (RCD) - a realtime panoramic view of the rear of the vehicle only when in reverse gear
- Exterior mirror LED turn signals
- Complex exterior mirror geometries
Aerospace
Gentex signed a contract through
PPGPPG Industries is a global supplier of paints, coatings, optical products, specialty materials, chemicals, glass and fiber glass. The company has more than 140 manufacturing facilities and equity affiliates and operates in more than 60 countries. Sales in 2008 were $15.8 billion...
Aerospace to deliver automatic dimming windows for the
BoeingThe Boeing Company is a major aerospace and defense corporation, founded by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Its international headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois, since 2001...
787 Dreamliner. These windows will use electrochromics to adjust the amount of light allowed through the window.
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