Smart Glass Glimpse, 10/24/16
Smart Glass Glimpse brings you the latest technology news in the glass and glazing industry so you can easily keep updated.
Smarter Windshields For Our Cars
As our vehicles become smarter, car manufacturers have to rethink everything they knew about building their products. The previous model doesn't suffice, it must be updated to accommodate new technologies. An essential update will be the construction of windshields because the rise of self-driving cars demands them to be extremely functional.
Leave it to Nippon Sheet Glass Co. to find a new way to build windshields. At the Maizuru plant in Kyoto, Japan, the company will install a high-performance press bending line for automotive windshields, applying its proprietary technologies. Basically, the company will develop new technology for windshields using press bending, which is a type of glass-shaping process where heated glass is pressed in a mold sheet by sheet.
Press bending is a better process to use for windshields that demand a complex three-dimensional shape which accurately replicates the car manufacturers' design. Comparing to previous technologies, press bending will mold itself better to the needs of the automotive industry as it moves into self-driving systems. Windshields are increasingly equipped with new features such as advanced driver assisting sensors, cameras, and head-up displays. Nippon Sheet Glass Co.'s objective is to build windshields that can sustain these features while maintaining their previous functionalities.
Since the company's proprietary press bending process provides excellent shaping capability and the company itself understands the needs of its fellow industry, Nippon Sheet Glass Co. will be able to respond to the growing demand for high performance windshields for many years to come.
We want to know, what do you think about the advancements in the automotive industry? Do you find them shocking or have you expected those changes for a long time? Let us know in the comment section below.