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THERE ARE four viable types of glazing for use in motor vehicles: 1. Laminated 2. Tempered 3. Laminated glass-plastic 4. Tempered glass-plastic Laminated and laminated glass-plastic glazing will pass the MVSS Standard 205 for windshields, and all four types can now be used in side and rear windows. Laminated and to a limited extent laminated glass-plastic windshield glazing has been used in production, but the glass-plastic was not durable enough so it has been discontinued. Tempered glass has been used exclusively in side and rear windows since the early 1960's due to the strength requirements, and is the best choice for these locations. Recent experimental attempts to use tempered glass-plastic glazing in side windows have been unsuccessful due to high neck loads, and additional hazards in the designs. Even more important is the lack of durability due to more severe exposure than the glass-plastic windshield experienced.

A comparative study of the safety performance of asymmetric and standard HPR windshields was conducted. The effect of increased interlayer thickness was also quantified. There were four different types of asymmetric windshields which had inner layer thicknesses of 0.8 to 1.5 mm and interlayer thicknesses of 0.76 and 1.14 mm. The experimental program consisted of both full scale sled tests and headform drop tests. A total of 127 vehicular impacts were carried out using a modified Volkswagen Rabbit. The test subject was a 50th percentile Fart 572 anthropomorphic test device. The asymmetric windshields were found to have a lower lacerative potential than that of the standard windshield. The best TLI value of 5.2 was provided by a 0.8 - 0.76 mm windshield at 60 km/h. That for the standard windshield was 7.7 at the same speed. All HIC values were less than 1,000 at 48 km/h.

A series of carefully controlled simulated barrier crashes at speeds from 20 to 30 mph are used to compare the relative safety of rubber gasket, butyl tape and polysulfide adhesive methods of installing windshields. Only subtle differences were found in the severity index and the laceration index. There is an indication that the rubber gasket installation has a higher resistance to interlayer tears and the lacerations from impacts to polysulfide installations are slightly more severe. Head attitude at impact was found to have a significant effect on interlayer tears and resultant lacerations.

Conventional 30 mil HPR laminated and wide-zone monolithic tempered windshields are compared on a safety performance basis from the stand-points of occupant injuries from frontal force collisions and injury or loss of control from breakage from high speed external impact of stones. All experiments were conducted with the windshields installed by conventional methods in an automobile. Occupant injury potential as measured by the Severity Index for brain damage at a 30 mph barrier impact simulation was approximately two times as high for the tempered as for the laminated windshields, although only one tempered windshield exceeded the recommended maximum value of 1,000. Severe lacerations resulted in all impacts in which the tempered glass broke. Less severe lacerations were found for the laminated windshield impacts at comparable speeds.

Safety performance of an experimental windshield with a thin, chemically tempered inner pane is compared with the standard windshield and other experimental windshields. The chemically tempered windshield has a penetration velocity of 35 mph compared with 26 mph penetration velocity for the standard windshield and has lower peak head accelerations than other types used in the experiments. The windshield tested produces a bulge on impact, which decelerates the head over a long distance with low accelerations. The bulge or pocket is lined with particles that are less lacerative than the standard annealed glass.

A new laminated automobile windshield called Triplex “Ten-Twenty,” fabricated from two thermally stressed glass plies of 2.3 mm soda-lime float glass laminated with a 0.76 mm HPR polyvinyl butyral interlayer, has been biomechanically evaluated by Triplex Safety Glass Co., Ltd., using a dropping headform and a skull impactor, and by Wayne State University, using a 50th percentile anthropomorphic dummy on the WHAM III sled test facility. The results of these evaluations at velocities up to 60 km/h are expressed in terms of Gadd index, head injury criterion, and various laceration scales including the new Triplex laceration index (TLI). Some details are also given of other properties of the windshield. The results of the evaluations indicate that the Ten-Twenty windshield offers a reduction of about two units on the TLI scale equivalent to one of the following: 1. A 99% reduction in the number of cuts when the length and depth of cuts remain unaltered. 2.

An improved windshield with a special, thin, plastic inner surface attached to the inner surface of a three layer windshield similar to those used in the United States minimizes lacerations from occupant impact to the windshield during a collision. The plastic coats the sharp edges of the broken glass preventing or minimizing laceration. It was evaluated by comparing its laceration performance with that of a standard windshield in simulated barrier crashes at velocities up to 65 km/h. No lacerations resulted from impact to the Securiflex windshield at Barrier Equivalent Velocities up to 65 km/h. Substantial laceration resulted at velocities above 20 km/h with the standard windshield. It is concluded that the Securiflex windshield essentially eliminates lacerations in the particular vehicle involved at velocities up to at least 65 km/h.

Children riding on the bed over the cab in campers can be injured in forward force collisions from striking the glazing material and/or being ejected through the opening. The two types of glazing commonly used are acrylic and laminated. A comparison of the performance of the two types of glazing in simulated forward force collisions at velocities up to 30 mph showed the acrylic material to pose threats of neck and back injury and the laminated material to result in lacerations. Ejections occurred with the acrylic that were not present with the laminated windshields when correct glazing techniques were used. With poor installation procedures, ejections occurred in both types of glazing materials. It is concluded that the best way to avoid injury is to prevent the child from riding in the over-the-cab bunk. If the child does ride there, his body axis should be positioned at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle.