Climate control applications are of great interest in 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's performance, recommends a defroster system development seq
uence, and addresses relevant future challenges.