WO1997049568A1

WO1997049568A1 - Antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like

Info

Publication number: WO1997049568A1
Application number: PCT/EP1997/003163
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pietro Pugliese
Original assignee: Gasparri, Rita
Priority date: 1996-06-25
Filing date: 1997-06-18
Publication date: 1997-12-31
Also published as: ITMI961286A0; ITMI961286A1; AU3340097A; IT1290769B1

Abstract

An antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, comprising at least one filtering element (1) meant to be placed on the windshield (4) at the side directed towards the motor vehicle cabin; the filtering element (1) is provided with adjustment and fixing means (2, 3; 5) for adjusting its position, so that it can be arranged at the same level as the eyes of the vehicle driver.

Description

ANTIDAZZLE DEVICE FOR WINDSHIELDS, PARTICULARLY FOR MOTOR VEHICLES AND THE LIKE Technical Field

The present invention relates to an antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like. Background Art

It is known that during travel in a motor vehicle the driver is often dazzled by motor vehicles traveling in the opposite direction which use their headlights inappropriately.

This bad habit can be noted increasingly often both during the day and at night. In particular, during the night motor vehicle drivers sometimes need to better illuminate the stretch of road they are about to travel over, in order to avoid accidents.

Whilst on the one hand using the headlights has the intended effect, on the other hand there is the drawback that the light beam dazzles drivers arriving from the opposite direction.

These drivers have no way to avoid this phenomenon, since ordinary sun vizors available in motor vehicles are unable to protect against a light beam that arrives frontally and strikes the motor vehicle windshield at right angles.

The danger of this dazzled condition is evident and it is clear that during night driving it is not even possible to wear protective glasses with tinted lenses, since this would entail severely limited general visibility for the driver of a motor vehicle. Disclosure of the Invention

A principal aim of the present invention is to provide an antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, which allows to substantially eliminate the blinding caused by oncoming vehicles. Within the scope of this aim, an object of the present invention is to provide an antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, which can be easily arranged at the intended level on the windshield depending on the height of the driver. Another object of the present invention is to provide an antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, which can be operated manually or by a motor.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an antidazzle device for windshields which is highly reliable, relatively easy to manufacture, and has a competitive cost.

This aim, these objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are achieved by an antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, characterized in that it comprises at least one filtering element meant to be placed on the windshield at the side directed towards the motor vehicle cabin, said at least one filtering element being provided with adjustment and fixing means for adjusting its position, so that it can be arranged at the same level as the eyes of the vehicle driver. Brief Description of the Drawings

Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the device according to the invention, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein: figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the device according to the invention; figure 2 is a side view of the device according to the invention shown in figure 1, fixed on the inside of a motor vehicle windshield; figure 3 is a front view of the device according to the invention, according to the first embodiment; and figure 4 is an elevation view of a second embodiment of the device according to the invention. Ways of carrying out the Invention With reference to the above figures, the device according to the invention, according to a first embodiment thereof illustrated in figures 1 to 3, comprises a filtering element 1, which is advantageously constituted by a transparent lamina which is covered with a transparent film which has a shade of color capable of filtering the light rays that strike it but does not compromise visibility in night driving conditions.

The filtering element 1 is provided with adjustment and fixing means which conveniently comprise, in a first embodiment, an arm 2 and a sucker 3 which is suitable to fix the device according to the invention to the inside of the windshield 4 of a motor vehicle. The arm 2 is rotatably connected, at one of its ends, to the filtering element 1, whilst its other end is rotatably connected to the sucker 3. Figure 4 is a view of a second embodiment of the device according to the invention, in which the filtering element

1, which is similar to the one of the first embodiment, can be adjusted as regards its fixing position on the inside of the windshield 4.

In this case, the adjustment and fixing means comprise two guides 5 constituted by two thin laminae which can be coupled to the windshield so as to adhere thereto. The guides 5 are conveniently transparent. The filtering element 1 is provided, at its vertical lateral sides, with portions which are shaped so as to couple to the grooves, which are for example dovetail- shaped, formed in the guides 5.

With reference to the above figures, operation of the device according to the invention is as follows.

In the first embodiment of the invention, the filtering element 1 is arranged manually by the user by fixing the sucker 3 to the inside of the windshield 4 of the motor vehicle. The fixing position is chosen so that the filtering element 1 is located in front of the driver and at the same height as his eyes.

In this manner, the filtering element 1 prevents the light beams of the headlights of oncoming motor vehicles from dazzling the driver when they cross. If one does not wish to use the device according to the invention, the filtering element 1 is rotated about the arm 2 and the arm is rotated about the sucker 3. In this manner, the filtering element 1 is arranged in the position shown in dashed lines in figure 3. Therefore, if the device according to the invention is not used, the filtering element can be arranged above the useful field of view of the driver.

In the case of the second embodiment, shown in figure 4, the device according to the invention can be positioned very precisely and adjustably thanks to the presence of the guides 5.

Sliding along the vertical axis of the windshield 4 allows the user to place the filtering element 1 at will, according to his own height, so as to place the element 1 at eye level.

Therefore, even in case of drivers having different heights for the same motor vehicle, it is possible to quickly adapt the position of the filtering element 1.

If one does not wish to use the filtering element 1, it is possible to choose to place it in the lower portion of the windshield 4 or in the upper portion thereof; the choice is made according to the driver's height.

In practice, it has been observed that the device according to the invention fully achieves the intended aim and objects, since it allows to substantially eliminate the effect of the dazzling produced when motor vehicles cross and one of said motor vehicles is using its headlights.

The possibility offered by the second embodiment of the device according to the invention to vary the position of the filtering element at will along the vertical axis of the windshield allows drivers of different heights to find the most useful position in which the filtering element is arranged at their eye level.

The device according to the present invention is useful not only in case of dazzling produced by the lights of oncoming vehicles but also at the exit of tunnels in very strong natural lighting conditions.

The filtering element, when arranged appropriately, allows to enhance the function normally performed by the sun vizors provided in motor vehicles, particularly if the sun is very low and its rays are substantially parallel to the ground, as occurs for example at dawn or sunset.

In this manner, the moments during which the driver has very limited road visibility owing to the intense sunlight that strikes the windshield are eliminated.

This also occurs, for example, at the exit of a tunnel. The device thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept. Thus, for example, the adjusting and fixing means of the second embodiment of the device according to the present invention can include, in addition to the guides 5, motor means meant to automatically move the filtering element 1.

Said motor means (not shown in the figures) comprise, for example, a gearmotor and a worm screw. The worm screw is connected to the filtering element and is actuated by the gearmotor so that it is possible to adjust the position of the filtering element along the vertical axis of the windshield 4. Moreover, the transparent filtering element 1 can be devoid of the tinted transparent film and can be made directly with a shade of color which is suitable to filter the sun rays and the beams of motor vehicle lights.

Finally, all the details may be replaced with other technically equivalent elements. In practice, the materials employed, so long as they are compatible with the specific use, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.

Claims

1. An antidazzle device for windshields, particularly for motor vehicles and the like, characterized in that it comprises at least one filtering element meant to be placed on the windshield at the side directed towards the motor vehicle cabin, said at least one filtering element being provided with adjustment and fixing means for adjusting its position, so that it can be arranged at the same level as the eyes of the vehicle driver.

2. An antidazzle device according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one filtering element comprises a transparent lamina which has a shade of color suitable to filter the light rays that strike it.

3. An antidazzle device according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one filtering element comprises a transparent lamina which is covered with a transparent film that has a shade of color suitable to filter the light rays that strike it.

4. An antidazzle device according to claim 1, characterized in that said adjustment and fixing means comprise a sucker which can be attached to said windshield and an arm which is connected to said sucker at one end and to said filtering element at the other end.

5. An antidazzle device according to claim 4, characterized in that said arm is rotatably connected both to said sucker and to said filtering element.

6. An antidazzle device according to claim 1, characterized in that said adjustment and fixing means comprise at least one guide which can be fixed on the inside of the windshield so as to adhere thereto, said guide having a groove inside which a shaped portion engages for sliding, said portion being complementary to said guide and being formed at an edge of said filtering element, said guide allowing sliding along a vertical axis of the windshield of said filtering element.

7. An antidazzle device according to claim 6, characterized in that said adjustment and fixing means comprise two guides which can be fixed to the inside of the motor vehicle windshield so as to adhere thereto, said guides being made of transparent material .

8. An antidazzle device according to claim 7, characterized in that said filtering element is provided, at its vertical lateral edges, with shaped portions which are complementary to grooves formed in said guides, in order to allow the sliding of said filtering element within the guides.

9. An antidazzle device according to claim 1, characterized in that said adjustment and fixing means comprise motor means for adjusting the position of said filtering element.

10. An antidazzle device according to claim 9, characterized in that said motor means comprise a gearmotor and a worm screw, said worm screw being connected to said filtering element, said gearmotor actuating said worm screw to adjust said filtering element along the vertical axis of the windshield.