Is a Camera Cleaner Reasonable?

[Luke Behnke]

Given the Aptera is aerodynamic and the eddies around the cameras are minimized best they can. Do you think a cleaning option would be a realistic idea to add to the Aptera? For times if you were driving down a dusty road or any other road conditions that could cake something onto the cameras.

I saw this option from BMW iX and saw how aerodynamic it was.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNbltW0zbqo

Given this will be a slight weight penalty, with the motors and extra washer tubing, would it be worth it to add something like this to one or more cameras for the Aptera for convenience?

[Len Nowak]

Neat!

“ For me” I like the the AMC philosophy of lean / simple , which complements their Right to Repair for folks who may never considered that.

Steve and/ or Nathan mentioned in one video

because of Aptera’s aerodynamic shape mist surfaces it will be self cleaning by the air passing over ?

I have lived off primitive roads since 2016 in dusty AZ and my rear view back up camera on my square truck tail gate has never been a real issue But I wash it once a month. Just my experience ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I think there will be three camera lenses on the Aptera(?)

Snow is not a common event here.

[John Malcom]

I would think not. Extra engineering and parts expense for niche use and like many of the headlight and other cleaners fail or clog up often. To keep the price low and delivery on time, if needed I will wipe of manually.

[Joshua Rosen]

Will the ADAS system use camera’s or just RADAR? If there is a front facing camera it will likely be mounted on the windshield which gets cleaned by wipers. Because they have no intention of offering FSD on this car the side and rear camera’s won’t need automatic cleaning. People are pretty good at interpreting data from dirty cameras and if it’s bad enough you can clean them off the next time you stop. I always have some glass cleaner in my trunk.

[Curtis Cibinel]

I agree with John its just extra stuff to go wrong; that said I remember saying that about automatic windows in the 90s so this kind of gadget may be the future. This kind of tech obviously becomes more necessary if talking about actually achieving FSD. For now I will operate the car and if a camera needs cleaning it will get some spit and a McDonalds napkin.

[kerbe2705]

At one point we were told that the ADAS system would be camera-only. This image circles where we think cameras will be located: The darker areas on the front of the roof and the “missing” diamonds on either side of the high-mounted brake light at the top of the hatch.

[Paul Kirchner]

My vote is no. It seems we humans when given something simple and made to a certain ethos instead clamor for bells and whistles. We want to bloat everything we own. Make it bigger, make it faster, give me more, more, more.

And then those things we ask for very seldom get used.

Let’s keep Aptera lean and slim and hungry.

[John Malcom]

👍😄 Certainly nailed human behavior!

[my_discord_number_is_0328 bloody stupid]

i posted about manual wipers, if something sticky from construction vehicular or food or bird poop or something lands on aptera while in slow traffic. camera face is small surface area, a little bit of something will block vision. use bending sheet metal or strings on pulley, connecting all the wipers in one back forth movement slider that user slides back and forth

[John Malcom]

You always come up with such ingenious and creative solutions😀

[Luke Behnke]

After seeing the popup washer fluid idea BMW had I thought of a small wiper option.

This would not be practical when the car is covered in ice but in all other conditions there could be a small wiper type object on an arm that comes out to wipe the camera.

For a rough visual of the arm motion you can see the useless box video.

Not that this is a need for the first car but maybe could be thought of as an idea down the road for other iterations.

[my_discord_number_is_0328 bloody stupid]

the rear camera is behind a window in rear top part of car, needs to be sitting well behind the glass because it it doesnt, a few water drops can totally blur the vision especially in low speed traffic or under heavy rain.

[Steven G. Bueche]

I hear what you’re saying. When my rear camera gets dust or rain on it I simply wipe it with my finger and it’s all good. The M3’s sits in the rear exposed to the elements so it does happen. As described above it really doesn’t obstruct the vision as bad as you might think.

As for the auto camera washers, (post) it’s a great idea just like the Volvo headlight wipers but IMHO it’s what I call a Foo Foo item and a contributor to laziness. BMW folks are more about style than substance. Don’t see many older BMW’s on the road anymore.

Although I can appreciate lots of these ideas floating around on this forum most would make this car cost prohibitive and take us out of the market for the masses.

[Steven Bryant]

Why can’t we just accept the options that are now offered. I don’t need washers on mirrors, vibrating seats, self driving ability, self inflating tires,or for that matter a third seat or a fourth tire. I just wish to enjoy the drive.

[Norman Barrett]

Amen!

[Gary Greenway]

I do not want to pay for this feature. Keep it simple. Less cost. Less weight. Less chance of something going wrong.

[Steven Bryant]

👍👍

[IA -1]

Since there will be no back window for the full solar package, there must be a solution to keep the back camera clean at all times. There should be no excuse for having a limited rear view camera (or side view camera) visibility. On a “regular car” we have a back window defroster and on some cars back window wipers. We also have side view mirror defrosters which can dry out the mirrors when there is water from rain, snow or condensation. Having side and back view visibility at all times is a must, and I am not willing to compromise on that.