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Methods to evaluate the light degradation environment of automotive interior materials in the market have been studied. The aim for this study was calculating the light degradation environment quantitatively on the basis of meteorologically observed value. For the quantitative light degradation factor, Equivalent Total Sunshing Energy (ESE) was used. ESE was a value presented by the authors in 1982. Although ESE correlates closely with the degradation, it takes more than one year to determine at a given resion. With this new method, a monthly average daily ESE at the gien resion was estimated numetically based on the meteorologically observed monthly average solar radiation and monthly maximum air temperature at the resion. The calculated value in relation to actual measured value were accurate to within 10%.

A method of making light durability estimation of automotive interior materials has been investigated, and the Equivalint Total Sunshine Energy (ESE) is obtained to combine the detrimental factors during outdoor use, e.g., light intensity, exposure period, and thermal conditions. Outdoor exposure tests and measurement of ESE are carried out with the same materials using many different exposure conditions, for example, three exposure sites, three exposure periods and four seasons. All observed deterioration characteristics caused by the outdoor exposure tests show excellent correlation with the ESE value.