Simulation of Mechanical Pressure in a Rubber-Glass Contact for Wiper Systems

The mechanical pressure distribution under a wiper blade is considered as an essential parameter for the generation of wiping defects. In this paper, experiments are first performed to show the heterogeneity of this parameter on a flat glass due to the structure of the wiper blade. This heterogeneity is then strengthened by the curvature of the windshield as observed in following experiments. Thanks to these results and conclusions, a mathematical model, based on elastic foundations theory, is developed here for the simulation of this parameter. The final theoretical results show good correlation with experiments on either flat glass or real windshield. From now, this model provides a numeric tool to engineering departments, for the simulation of the pressure distribution under a wiper blade in the early phases of the design of new system. The algorithm, which requires a general description of the system, can be applied to any wiper blade on any windshield and requires little CPU time.