Defrosting of automotive windshields: progress and challenges

Climate control applications are of great interest to the automotive indust ry. The issue of windshield defrosting has received, and continues to recei ve, considerable attention from various investigators around the world. Thi s paper presents an up-to-date assessment of our knowledge base on defrosti ng. It documents a comprehensive literature review covering experimental as well as computational efforts, accompanied by utilization of electric heat ing elements, conducting films, and heat storage devices. The paper also pr esents a list of measurement methods for airflow and thermal patterns perti nent to defrosting. It concludes with an example on quick detection of a de froster system performance, recommends a defroster system development seque nce, and addresses relevant future challenges.