Abstract
A rear obstacle detector and warning unit was designed to detect the presence of an object in the rear blind spot behind a vehicle and warn the operator if the possibility of backing over the object exists. A semiconductor infrared laser and a semiconductor detector, mounted on a vehicle behind the rear axle with a unique optical lens system proved capable of detecting small objects up to 10 ft directly behind the vehicle. The unit performance verified the ability to design an obstacle detection system with a sharply defined field of view using infrared technology.