I want McLaren's promised wiperless windshield for Christmas. It's a radically right solution for rainy and dirty windshields - a buzz that drives the water and dust off the window so it never films or cakes or smudges in the first place. Imagine having the optimum view forward all the time, not just for a moment as the blade moves by. And no layer of frost. And reduced drag.
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The chief designer for the McLaren sports car dropped a teaser that wiperless is coming soon.
Motor Authority reports:
"Frank Stephenson said his employer is developing a system that can repel material from a windshield by creating a force field using high-frequency sound waves.Such systems were originally created by the military for use on fighter jets. Stephenson didn’t go into detail but explained that an ultrasonic transducer on the screen could send 30 kHz waves of ultrasound across the surface and repel all debris--even snow and insects. Benefits of the system are said to be improved visibility, since debris would be repelled instantly, as well as improved aerodynamic efficiency, due to less drag".
CNetTV links to a
2008 Fioravante demo video but I can't get the sound to work.
There's a video clip of
a related concept which coats the windshield so that water beads on the glass instead of wetting it.
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