Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

IR Imaging Study on Heater Performamnce of Outside Rearview Mirrors for Automobiles

Conference ·
OSTI ID:1026701

Adhesive bonded electrical heaters have been used in outside rearview mirrors of automobiles in order to act as defrosters. Entrapment of air pockets between the heater and the mirror can affects the performance and structural integrity of the mirror assembly. Since painting over the mirror is not an option in the production environment, the biggest challenge for IR imaging is to minimize surface reflection. Looking through a smooth, highly reflective first-surface mirror and a 2 mm thick glass without picking up other heat sources in the room, such as people, electronics equipment and the camera itself, requires careful planning and effective shielding. In this paper, we present our method of avoiding mirror reflection and IR images of the heated mirror in operation. Production heaters and heaters with artificial defect were studied. The IR imaging method has shown to be an effective tool for heater quality control and performance studies.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
Sponsoring Organization:
EE USDOE - Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EE)
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725
OSTI ID:
1026701
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

IR Spectrometer Using 90-degree Off-axis Parabolic Mirrors
Conference · Tue Sep 02 00:00:00 EDT 2008 · Proceedings SPIE · OSTI ID:939689

IR Spectrometer Using 90-Degree Off-Axis Parabolic Mirrors
Conference · Fri Feb 29 23:00:00 EST 2008 · OSTI ID:926257

Further Analysis of Accelerated Exposure Testing of Thin-Glass Mirror Matrix
Conference · Sun Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 2006 · OSTI ID:981974